# Track-and-trace

> Track-and-trace is the ability to follow a regulated product through the supply chain and back to its source, the basis of cannabis tracking and recalls.

- Canonical: https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/track-and-trace.html
- Also written: track and trace, traceability, cannabis tracking system, product traceability
- Glossary category: Legal and regulatory
- Status: Draft: awaiting expert review · Updated: 2026-10-31
- Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/), attribute "GenetixBay cannabis glossary"

Track-and-trace is the general regulatory and supply-chain idea that each unit of a product can be tracked forward (where did this batch go?) and traced back (where did this package come from?). In cannabis it is usually delivered through a [seed-to-sale system](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/seed-to-sale-tracking.md).

## In practice

If a lab finds a contaminant in a retail package, track-and-trace lets the regulator identify the batch, the harvest, the cultivation room and every other package from that batch, and order a recall. Lot numbers on labels connect the consumer product to that record.

For genetics, a similar idea applies voluntarily: recording which [seed batch](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/seed-run.md), mother and father a plant came from lets problems such as [herm-prone](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/herm-prone.md) batches or [viroid](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/viroid.md) infections be traced to their source.

Rules differ by country, state, province and city, and change often. This is a general definition, not legal advice: check local rules.

## Don't confuse with

- **Seed-to-sale tracking**: the specific cannabis implementation, often used interchangeably.
- **Chain of custody**: the documented handling of one sample, such as a lab sample.

## Related terms

[Seed-to-sale tracking](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/seed-to-sale-tracking.md), [Licensed producer](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/licensed-producer.md), [Labelling requirements](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/labelling-requirements.md), [GB-ID](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/gb-id.md)