GDST & Aquaculture: Shaping the Future of Traceability
- Kumaragita
- 3 hours ago
- 6 min read
Table of Index
Executive Summary
Aquaculture is the fastest-growing sector in global seafood production, projected to exceed USD 360.6 billion by 2032. As the industry expands, ensuring sustainability, food safety, and supply chain transparency through robust traceability systems has become a key priority for governments and industry leaders (Seafood Source, 2024).
Traceability is a strategic investment for seafood businesses, enhancing efficiency, risk management, and market access. However, its industry-wide implementation remains challenging due to supply chain gaps, inconsistent data standards, and outdated record-keeping, which hinder data integration and transparency (Planet Tracker, 2021).
The Global Dialogue on Seafood Traceability (GDST) sets a universal standard to enhance transparency, interoperability, and regulatory compliance in seafood supply chains. Developed through multi-stakeholder collaboration (2017–2020), it defines key data elements and structured formats to support seamless global traceability (GDST, n.d).
As the fastest-growing sector in global seafood production, aquaculture plays a crucial role in meeting the rising demand for seafood while promoting sustainable practices. With advancements in technology and increasing consumer awareness of sustainable food sources, the industry has seen significant expansion. Valued at USD 313 billion in 2022, the global aquaculture market is projected to surpass USD 360.6 billion by 2032 (Seafood Source: 2024). However, with this rapid expansion comes increasing concerns over sustainability, food safety, and supply chain transparency. Governments and industry leaders are prioritizing traceability systems to ensure that farmed seafood meets regulatory and market-driven requirements.
Beyond compliance, traceability is emerging as a valuable investment for seafood businesses, offering improved operational efficiency, stronger risk management, and better market access. A well-implemented traceability system does more than just track seafood from harvest to table- it enhances supply chain transparency, strengthens accountability, and builds consumer trust in an industry often plagued by mislabeling, illegal fishing, resource sustainability and environmental concerns (Planet Tracker: 2021).
Despite its advantages, industry-wide traceability remains difficult to implement due to gaps in supply chain cooperation, inconsistent data standards, and outdated record-keeping practices. Many seafood businesses face challenges in persuading supply chain partners to share necessary data, while tracking seafood at critical points—such as processing, auctions, and transshipment—remains a major hurdle, particularly in developing markets. Additionally, the lack of standardized, interoperable traceability systems makes data integration complex, while reliance on manual paper-based records leaves room for inefficiencies, errors, and fraud (Planet Tracker: 2021).
The Global Dialogue on Seafood Traceability (GDST) was established to address such challenges in seafood supply chains, including mislabeling, data fragmentation and inconsistent traceability standards. As a global, industry driven initiative, GDST established a standardized framework to enhance transparency, interoperability, and accountability across the seafood sector. Developed through a multi-stakeholder dialogue (2017–2020), the GDST standard defines the minimum Key Data Elements (KDEs) required for accurate product documentation and establishes structured data formats to enable seamless global traceability. Alongside its technical framework, GDST provides non-technical guidance to help businesses implement compliance effectively. By adopting and implementing GDST standards, seafood stakeholders can strengthen supply chain integrity, build trust with regulators and consumers, and ensure data consistency across supply chains. These early adopters are better positioned in a global landscape where stringent traceability is rapidly becoming a competitive requirement (GDST.n.d.).
The Importance of GDST in Seafood Traceability
The GDST standard is built upon the foundation of internationally utilized GS1 Standards for traceability, specifically GS1’s EPCIS and Digital Link Standards. These widely adopted standards are used across retail, healthcare, and the food industry, ensuring compatibility with global supply chain requirements. This widely adopted event-based traceability standard ensures that data is recorded at specific points in the supply chain, known as Critical Tracking Events (CTEs). Each CTE requires specific Key Data Elements (KDEs) to document the What, When, Where and How of the products/lot journey (Seafood 2030 Forum: 2024). GDST enables companies to leverage their existing systems without committing to proprietary solutions, ensuring greater efficiency, seamless data exchange, and easier compliance with global trade regulations (GDST).
The rapid growth of aquaculture presents new challenges to seafood traceability, requiring the need for a structured and scalable approach when it comes to ensuring supply chain integrity and responsible sourcing. Factors such as feed sources, antibiotic use, water quality, and farm management practices contribute to the multidimensional challenge that needs to be considered when it comes to implementing traceability within a given supply chain. GDST provides a standardized framework to track farmed seafood from hatchery to harvest, addressing industry-specific complexities and ensuring transparency in farm-to-market supply chains. It enhances transparency by ensuring that seafood products originate from legal production practices, while supporting improved food safety and fraud prevention. By aligning with international trade and regulatory requirements, GDST enables interoperability across systems- helping businesses meet responsible sourcing commitments, maintain data integrity, and protect sensitive business information without compromising traceability.
Although small-scale producers, including SMEs, may encounter difficulties in implementing digital solutions, traceability standards play a crucial role in promoting transparency and accessibility across the industry. Many businesses struggle with financial and technical limitations, making scalability and affordability a pressing concern.
For instance, a global survey conducted by Deloitte reveals that 45% of SMEs identify investment costs as a significant barrier to digital transformation. Similarly, smallholder producers who also operate on limited financial resources—find advanced digital tools, such as sensors and drones, largely inaccessible due to their high costs (ACM, n.d.; TRG International, n.d.).
While traceability investments may appear costly upfront—especially for small-scale producers—multiple studies have demonstrated that these systems can deliver a positive return on investment (ROI). According to Future of Fish (2018), ROI can be achieved through reduced product waste, improved operational efficiency, and access to premium markets that value transparency. Specific benefits include lower spoilage and shrinkage, streamlined audits, faster and more targeted recalls, and stronger brand positioning. Similarly, findings from the Global Food Traceability Center show that when traceability is integrated strategically across the value chain, it not only reduces business risks but also enhances long-term profitability and resilience. These insights are particularly relevant as small-scale farms and fisheries navigate evolving digital technologies and heightened consumer expectations.
As the aquaculture industry adapts to these evolving standards, the need for practical and scalable traceability solutions becomes increasingly critical. Ensuring compliance with frameworks like GDST requires technology-driven approaches that cater to the unique needs of diverse stakeholders, from large exporters to small-scale producers.
To support this inclusivity, the GDST invites all seafood stakeholders into their Global Dialogues. This industry-led collaboration ensures an open and participatory approach to further standardization and implementation of traceability practices across the supply chain.
Global Regulatory Landscape: Balancing Compliance and Business Needs
The effectiveness of traceability systems depends on the alignment between government regulations and private sector innovations. While government-led initiatives establish compliance frameworks, private sector solutions provide the agility and scalability needed for businesses to optimize their supply chains. Companies like Koltiva help bridge this gap by integrating standardized digital traceability tools that meet both regulatory requirements and industry needs.
This alignment is increasingly crucial as global regulations continue to evolve, shaping how traceability is implemented across markets. Legislation in key markets, such as the EU, United States and Japan, are driving the adoption of more rigorous traceability standards, requiring businesses to exercise greater due diligence, map their supply chains more thoroughly, and maintain deeper visibility into their suppliers and sourcing practices.
Why Early Adoption of GDST Matters
According to Sarah Harding, our Aquatic Resource and Standards Specialist, larger seafood companies are increasingly looking for interoperable traceability solutions. Solution providers must now go beyond compliance checklists, delivering systems that are both scalable and adaptable to real-world conditions, particularly in diverse and fragmented supply chains. In late 2024 Koltiva became an Endorser of the GDST, and we are now actively in the process of aligning our digital traceability solutions to the GDST framework. Offering scalable, integrated solutions that enable businesses to achieve compliance with developing regulations and standards, while also optimizing supply chain efficiency.
Now is the time to prioritize GDST capability—before it becomes a market barrier rather than a choice. As the industry moves toward stricter traceability standards and regulatory requirements, early adoption ensures a competitive edge, market access, and long-term sustainability.
If you’re interested in learning more about our GDST journey or the comprehensive end-to-end traceability solution we offer at Koltiva we would love to connect you to our experts. Discover how traceability adoption can transform your business into a more competitive, resilient, and future-ready seafood supplier.
Resources:
SeafoodSource. (2024). Global aquaculture surging, with production surpassing wild-catch fisheries, UN FAO SOFIA report finds. Retrieved from https://www.seafoodsource.com/news/supply-trade/global-aquaculture-surging-with-production-surpassing-wild-catch-fisheries-2024-un-fao-sofia-report-finds
Planet Tracker. (2021). Traceable returns: Unlocking the value of seafood traceability. Retrieved from https://planet-tracker.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/5.-Traceable-Returns.pdf
ACM. (n.d.). Digital agriculture for small-scale producers. Communications of the ACM. Retrieved from https://cacm.acm.org/research/digital-agriculture-for-small-scale-producers/
TRG International. (n.d.). Digital transformation & SME (small & medium-sized enterprises). Retrieved from https://blog.trginternational.com/digital-transformation-sme-small-medium-sized-enterprises
Global Dialogue on Seafood Traceability (GDST). (n.d.). About us. Retrieved from https://thegdst.org/about
SeafoodSource. (n.d.). Traceability. Retrieved from https://www.seafoodsource.com/seafood2030/forum/traceability
Writer: Kumara Anggita, Content Writer
Editor: Bobby Hermawan, Head of Digital Marketing
About Writer:
Kumara Anggita, serving as Koltiva's dedicated Content Writer, brings a wealth of experience from her six-year tenure in journalism in the fields of humanities and lifestyle, as well as her role as a writer in the tech industry. Her deep-rooted passion for gender equality and sustainability spurred her to enhance her reporting and storytelling skills through the EmPower Media Bootcamp by UN Women. Now, Kumara utilizes her platform to advocate for sustainable practices and gender equality through her compelling writing.
