Legislation for traceability - Prof. Pierina Visciano - a.a. 2026/2027
Schema della sezione
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Graduation cum laude in Veterinary Medicine at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of the University of Naples "Federico II".
PhD in "Inspection of Food of Animal Origin" at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of the University of Naples "Federico II".
Specialist in "Inspection of Food of Animal Origin" at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of the University of Naples "Federico II".
Assignment of collaboration as Coadjutor Veterinary at the Department of Food Nutrition and Veterinary Public Health, Ministry of Health in Rome.
Full Researcher VET/04 (Inspection of Food of Animal Origin) at the University of Teramo.
Associate Professor MVET-02/B (Inspection of Food of Animal Origin) at the University of Teramo.
National Scientific Qualification as Full Professor MVET-02/B (Inspection of Food of Animal Origin).
Member of the Quality Assurance Committee for the master degree in Food Science & Technology of the Department of Bioscience and Technology for Food, Agriculture and Environment, University of Teramo.
Member of the Students Practices Committee of the Department of Bioscience and Technology for Food, Agriculture and Environment, University of Teramo.
Member of the Committee for the "Gender Equality Plan" of University of Teramo.
Reference component for the Department of Bioscience and Technology for Food, Agriculture and Environment of the School of Legality and Justice of the University of Teramo.
Co-author of the book “Igiene degli alimenti – Aspetti igienico-sanitari degli alimenti di origine animale” - Schirone M., Visciano P. (2014), Collana Edagricole Università & Formazione, Bologna.
Co-author of the book "Igiene nei processi alimentari - Progettazione della sicurezza degli alimenti" - Paparella A., Schirone M., Visciano P. (2023), Editore Ulrico Hoepli, Milano.
General aim of the course
The course aims to provide students with a thorough understanding of food legislation of the European Union (EU) aimed at ensuring food traceability, identifying both the origin (tracing) and destination (tracking), to ensure a timely response in the event of withdrawal or recall of non-compliant products.
Special attention will also be paid to labeling requirements in the various food supply chains, enabling students to understand the rules for correctly applying food labels and avoiding penalties for non-compliance.
Knowledge and understanding
During the course, students will acquire the ability to:
- know, understand, and interpret current EU legislation regarding food traceability and labeling;
- be constantly updated on current, amended, or repealed industry regulations.
Applying knowledge and understanding
The knowledge acquired during the course will enable students to apply food traceability requirements and provide effective support to food business operators (FBOs).
They will be able to organize food traceability and labeling within any food company, in compliance with current industry regulations. Specifically, they must be able to:
- apply traceability requirements at all stages of food production;
- apply labeling standards throughout the various food supply chains.
Making judgements
In-depth knowledge of EU legislation will allow students to be fully independent in applying specific requirements regarding food traceability and labeling. They will also demonstrate the ability to identify and manage product and process non-conformities in compliance with current regulations.
Communication skills
Students must be able to transfer the knowledge and information acquired during the course regarding food traceability and labeling requirements to FBOs. They must also demonstrate the ability to interact with the competent authorities responsible for carrying out official control activities, with the aim of preventing and managing administrative sanctions and other corrective actions in the event of non-compliance.
Learning skills
Students will demonstrate the ability to independently identify and explore the most significant differences between EU legislation and international standards in the sector of traceability and labeling, including with a view to managing imports/exports to Third Countries.
This course is one of three modules of the Food Supply Chain Traceability course. There are no specific prerequisites, but prior knowledge of food hygiene and safety, as well as EU regulations, is particularly important.
Unit 1.
The legal foundations and Institutions of the EU.
Traceability regulations in the EU food system.
Regulation (EC) 178/2002 on the general principles and requirements of food legislation.
Regulation (EU) 931/2011 on the traceability requirements set by Regulation (EC) 178/2002 for food of animal origin.
Regulation (EU) 2019/1715 on the EU TRACES network.
Regulation (EU) 2017/625 on official controls and the IMSOC system.
Traceability of Italian food products: the national computerized platform for the buffalo dairy supply chain.
Law No. 75 of 21 April 2026 on sanctioning provisions to protect Made in Italy products.
Unit 2.
Regulation (EU) 1169/2011 on the provision of food information to consumers.
Identification and registration of livestock. Meat labeling.
Labeling and traceability in the fish supply chain.
Species identification according to the FAO ASFIS database.
The CATCH system in the digital management of catch certification.
The MSC Standard for sustainable fishing.
Egg marking and packaging. Packing center codes.
The field notebook for traceability in the agricultural supply chain.
The course is delivered through lectures with the support of teaching aids and interactive platforms (Wooclap).
During the lessons, exercises are conducted on public portals such as the EU official website regarding:
- Community food legislation (EUR-Lex);
- Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF Window);
- TRACES-NT of European Union.
Educational visits to local food companies are scheduled based on the number of participants and may be conducted in conjunction with other courses in the master degree program.
Paparella A., Schirone M., Visciano P. Igiene nei processi alimentari. Hoepli Editore, 2023
Bernd van der Meulen, Bart Wernaart. EU Food Law Handbook. 2020. ISBN: 978-90-8686-350-1
EU legislation from the European Union website (https://www.eurlex.com)
National legislation from the Official Journal (https://www.gazzettaufficiale.it/)
Lecture presentations uploaded to the University e-Learning platform
(https://elearning.unite.it/course/view.php?id=7372)
In addition to regular student office hours, tutoring sessions (in-person or remote) are available upon formal request sent to pvisciano@unite.it by interested students using their institutional email addresses.
The professor is available as tutor for professional internship activities and as thesis supervisor at local food companies or laboratories of analysis.
There are no intermediate tests.
The achievement of the learning objective is assessed through a multiple-choice test covering all course content.
The test consists of 30 multiple-choice questions (with 3 possible answers, of which 1 or 2 are correct), scored as follows:
- 1 point if there is a single correct answer or two correct answers, and the student provides all the correct answer(s);
- 0.5 points if there are two possible correct answers but the student does not provide both;
- 0 points for no answer or an incorrect answer.
If the written test is not passed, students have the option to take an oral exam covering all course content.
For working students or non-attending students, achievement of the learning objective is also assessed via the multiple-choice test and, if the written test is not passed, through an oral exam covering all course content.