Skip to content
British Software CompanySend a message

Lot-level traceability both ways in seconds, built around your recipes and batch sheets

Goods-in, batch records, finished lots and dispatch in one system that mirrors the paper you use today, so traceability is a by-product of making product rather than a day lost before the audit.

Send a messageEmail us

Free first callWe reply within one working dayA UK company

Sound familiar?

  • Supplier lot numbers are written on delivery notes at goods-in, and batch sheets are on paper or in Excel.
  • Finished-goods lot numbers are assigned by hand and dispatch notes are typed out.
  • Backwards and forwards traceability is reconstructed by searching through paper, and the annual mock recall is dreaded.
  • Temperature and CCP logs are on clipboards and the allergen matrix is in a spreadsheet.
  • Label data is re-typed every time a product changes.

What the system does

  • Goods-in on a tablet

    Supplier lot numbers typed or scanned against your approved-supplier list, with a photo of the delivery note.

  • A batch record for every run

    A batch record that pulls in the ingredient lots used, captures your CCP checks and takes an operator sign-off.

  • Finished lots and dispatch notes

    Finished-goods lot numbers and best-before dates generated your way, with dispatch notes that link each lot to each customer.

  • A trace screen that answers in seconds

    'Where did this ingredient lot go?' and 'What went into this batch?' answered in seconds, with the mock-recall report your auditor wants printed from the same screen.

  • Allergen matrix and label data

    Your allergen matrix and label data kept once and exported for printing.

  • Temperature and cleaning logs

    Temperature and cleaning logs on the same tablet, so the clipboard retires too.

What a first build looks like

A sauce and preserve maker with two production lines

Before
Supplier lot numbers written on delivery notes, batch sheets in Excel, finished lot numbers assigned by hand and the mock recall reconstructed from paper.
What we build
  • An approved-supplier list
  • Goods-in with lot capture
  • Batch records per recipe with CCP checks and sign-off
  • Generated finished lot numbers
  • Dispatch notes linked to around 40 trade customers
  • A two-way trace screen with a mock-recall PDF
  • The allergen matrix
  • A temperature log
Outcome
Production staff use it on tablets at no per-user charge, and the mock recall takes minutes, in time for the next audit.
How long
The delivery date is in the proposal, not in a sales pitch.

More worked examples

Why not just buy something?

Our spreadsheet passed last year.

It may pass again, until the auditor times the mock recall or you add a line. The point is doing the trace in minutes rather than a day, with records kept as a by-product of making product.

Traceability software is priced for factories.

The well-known systems are. We build the narrow system your process needs, at a fixed price, with no per-user fees for staff on the floor.

Our recipes are confidential.

They stay yours: your own database, access controlled by role. Hosting we manage under UK GDPR, with a written data-processing agreement. Your data is yours and you can export it at any time. The agreement sets out your rights to the software so you are never locked in.

We are busy enough without a software project.

We ask for a few hours of your technical manager's time over the build, not weeks. We work from your existing batch sheets, so the screens look like the paper they replace.

  • Fixed price, agreed in writing before we start.
  • A working version in weeks, not months.
  • Hosted, backed up and supported afterwards.

What an inspector will ask to see

Retained Regulation (EC) 178/2002, Article 18
One step back, one step forward: which supplier lot went into which batch, and which customer received which finished lot.
Retained Regulation (EC) 852/2004 (HACCP)
HACCP records, including the CCP checks on each batch.
SALSA
A documented traceability procedure covering raw materials from suppliers through production to known customers, tested each way at least once a year.
BRCGS
The same records in more depth for larger retail buyers.
UK Food Information Regulations and PPDS labelling (Natasha's Law)
An allergen matrix and label data for every product.
HMRC alcohol duty records
Batch and volume records for brewers and cider makers.

Correct to the best of our knowledge as at October 2026.

We build the record-keeping; we do not give regulatory advice. Your policies stay yours.

Questions we are often asked

Will this satisfy SALSA?

SALSA asks for a documented traceability procedure tested both ways at least annually. The system gives you the records and the test; your procedure and your auditor decide the rest. We do not claim approval by any scheme.

Can we scan barcodes?

Yes, with a phone camera or an inexpensive USB scanner. Typing works too.

Does it handle allergens and labels?

The allergen matrix is held once against ingredients and recipes, and label data exports in the format your label printer or designer uses.

What about breweries and duty?

Batch records and lot tracing work the same way for brewers and cider makers; duty returns are out of scope for a first version unless we agree otherwise.

How long and how much?

Fixed scope and price agreed first, first version in weeks, then a flat monthly fee for hosting and support.

Tell us what is not working

A few lines is plenty. We reply within one working day.

If you would rather we rang you

What you do by hand today, roughly how many staff, and what prompted you to look now.

We use what you send us only to reply to your enquiry. We also record which page you sent it from and your IP address, so we can stop spam. We will not add you to a mailing list. How we look after your details.

or email hello@dowco.co

The form is never the only route. Email hello@dowco.co. We reply within one working day.