The use of tracking chips to verify the authenticity of a product is not something new. This can be seen in electronic equipment, vehicles and even clothing. Now, food can also be included in this category.
p-Chip is a processing chip maker that has recently announced that their chip offerings are used in wheels of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, which is one of the most expensive cheeses in the world, and is only made in the Parma region of Italy.
This chip is used to ensure the authenticity of the cheese wheel, because recently, it has been discovered that there are many parties selling counterfeit Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese wheels. This is something serious because the cheese is also an Italian heritage food and this cheese has a value comparable to currency and even precious metals.
This p-Chip microchip comes in the size of a grain of salt and comes with several other advantages compared to RFID chips that are commonly used for this kind of implementation. Apart from the size advantage, it is also cheaper, more durable and safer. It also cannot be plagiarized, can withstand temperatures of -200 to 500 degrees Celsius, will not dissolve in water or chemical liquids, and can be easily scanned even if it is embedded.
These advantages are taken advantage of by Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese makers because it means that these chips can be used during the cheese making process. So far, it is also reported that around 100 thousand cheeses that are going through the ripening process have already started using this tracking chip.