Cold storage warehouse software for lot and expiry control under the SFCR
For the activities covered by SFCR section 90, required food traceability records identify the food, lot and relevant supplier or recipient. The rules distinguish retail and other activities. Records must support a request normally due within 24 hours, unless the Minister specifies another permitted period.
A cold store sits in the middle of that chain. The CFIA says storing food only to keep it in good condition, including temperature-controlled storage, does not by itself require a Safe Food for Canadians licence, but relabelling, repacking or grading for interprovincial trade does. WarePulse records lots and expiry dates on every plan; it does not monitor temperatures and has no built-in lot trace report, and this page says where that matters.
Connect workflow fit to rollout context earlier.
A cold store sits in the middle of that chain. The CFIA says storing food only to keep it in good condition, including temperature-controlled storage, does not by itself require a Safe Food for Canadians licence, but relabelling, repacking or grading for interprovincial trade does. WarePulse records lots and expiry dates on every plan; it does not monitor temperatures and has no built-in lot trace report, and this page says where that matters.
Third-party cold stores holding food for clients who ship between provinces or export, on a plan with lot and expiry tracking (all plans).
Operations whose temperature monitoring already lives in a separate sensor or building system.
Distributors preparing for FSMA 204 who want lot codes recorded at receiving and picking before the FDA’s 2028 enforcement date.
Keep the next commercial step visible.
Move from this page into pricing or implementation without losing the next step.
ImplementationCompare related WarePulse options
Compare the next topics buyers usually review: implementation, pricing, trust, field evidence, and operating fit.
Plan the next warehouse step
Bring one client’s lots and a week of orders, and we will walk through what WarePulse records at receiving and picking and what a trace request would still need.
Workflow steps
- Receive a pallet with two lots, move part of it to a pick location and confirm each location keeps its lot and expiry.
- Allocate an order and confirm the earliest-expiring lot is chosen; then try to pick a later lot and see the override prompt.
- Put a lot on hold with a recall reason and confirm it drops out of available stock until released.
Implementation planning
- Decide which clients’ food is subject to SFCR traceability or FSMA 204, and which data points each needs.
- Name zones by temperature range and review putaway overrides: WarePulse suggests locations by item and capacity, not by temperature.
- Agree how a trace request will be answered before go-live, since there is no built-in lot trace report.
Security and purchasing context
- SFCR s. 90(3) requires the records to be accessible in Canada. Verify the actual record locations, export access and retention arrangements for the proposed deployment before relying on them for a trace request.
- On every plan, each client portal login sees only that customer’s inventory and receipts.
- Hold and release actions are limited to managers.
Questions to resolve
- Does a storage-only cold store need an SFC licence? The CFIA says storage alone does not; relabelling or repacking may.
- Will the WMS replace our temperature monitoring? No; keep sensors and alarms in their own system.
Expected business impact
- FEFO at the pick, with a reason required for any override, stops a later-dated lot from shipping ahead of an earlier one without a record.
- Holds with a recall or investigation reason keep suspect stock out of allocation while the question is answered.
The sector rules your WMS has to respect
The operating rules that create the most risk in this sector — and hurt the most when the software gets them wrong.
Traceability records (SFCR s. 90): common name, lot code or unique identifier, supplier and date, recipient and date, for every lot you provide to someone else.
Retention is in SFCR s. 90(3): two years after provision or sale, accessible in Canada. Under s. 91, produce records normally within 24 hours or another permitted period specified by the Minister; if supplied electronically, use a single manipulable plain-text file.
Temperature and humidity (SFCR s. 65 and s. 72): facilities and vehicles must hold conditions appropriate to the food, with instruments that control, indicate and record them where needed; the regulation sets no fixed numbers.
Lot codes on labels (SFCR s. 92): consumer prepackaged food carries a lot code, so relabelling or repacking must carry it through.
US-bound product: FSMA section 204 requires holders of listed foods to keep traceability lot codes and key data for receiving and shipping; the FDA will not enforce it before July 20, 2028.
Where WarePulse fits this sector
How WarePulse handles the sector rules that actually matter on your floor.
On every plan, lot and expiry are recorded on receipt lines, stock balances and pick lines, and receiving refuses an expiry-tracked item without an expiry date.
Allocation takes the earliest-expiring lot first and the pick enforces FEFO; an override needs a reason.
Authorized managers can hold available quantity by item, lot and location. Held quantity and quarantine locations are excluded from new allocation; existing reservations and shipments need a separate recall review.
Expiry alerts flag stock 30, 60 and 90 days before it expires.
WarePulse does not record temperatures or restrict putaway by temperature: suggestions follow item and capacity, so frozen and chilled zones need clear location names and supervised overrides.
There is no built-in lot trace report yet: the data is recorded at receiving and picking, but a one-step-forward list by lot needs an extract scoped during implementation.
Built for warehouses in this industry
Operators and customer profiles where sector-specific rules shape the decision.
Third-party cold stores holding food for clients who ship between provinces or export, on a plan with lot and expiry tracking (all plans).
Operations whose temperature monitoring already lives in a separate sensor or building system.
Distributors preparing for FSMA 204 who want lot codes recorded at receiving and picking before the FDA’s 2028 enforcement date.
Not a fit yet if you need an on-demand trace report from the WMS, GS1-128 parsing at receiving or temperature-aware putaway.
What a cold store has to produce when the CFIA calls
A trace request asks for what SFCR s. 90 requires you to keep: which customers received a given lot, when, and who supplied it. If the lot is recorded at receiving and again at every pick, the answer already exists as data; if it is rebuilt from bills of lading and handwritten logs, 24 hours is short. Ask each WMS vendor to produce that list in front of you.
Record the lot and expiry at receiving, not at shipping.
Keep lot identity when stock moves from a pallet location to a pick face.
Ask each vendor to produce the one-step-forward list for a lot, and note whether it is a report or a custom extract.
Keep temperature logs in your monitoring system and reference them by location and date.
Where to go next
Receiving workflow
Record lot, expiry and quantity at the dock, where traceability starts.
See detailsLot and expiry control
How FEFO allocation, holds and expiry alerts work together.
See detailsFood and beverage
The broader food warehouse page: rotation, retailer rules and expiry.
See detailsFeature hub
Review barcode, lot, billing, and portal capabilities.
See detailsWorkflow hub
Connect the sector rule to the station that must change first.
See detailsComposite operating scenarios
Use disclosed composite scenarios to keep planning grounded in operations.
See detailsEcosystem data exchange
Review CSV, Next Movement, and scoped data handoffs that shape the sector flow.
See detailsPricing
Plans from $699 CAD a month for one warehouse, with unlimited users.
See detailsImplementation
Review the rollout path before the evaluation turns into a risky cutover.
See detailsFrequently asked questions
Does a cold storage warehouse need a Safe Food for Canadians licence?+
How fast must traceability records reach the CFIA?+
Can WarePulse produce a lot trace for the CFIA?+
Does WarePulse monitor temperatures?+
When does FSMA 204 apply to US-bound food?+
Can WarePulse read GS1 lot barcodes?+
Anchor the evaluation to the hardest rule on your floor.
Start with the question the CFIA will ask: which customers got this lot. Ask every vendor, WarePulse included, to answer it from the system in front of you.
Plan the next evaluation step
Free WMS Tools & Resources
Use these public resources to plan migration, compare vendors, benchmark KPIs, and estimate ROI before the next walkthrough.
WMS migration checklist
Use a sequenced checklist to scope data, workflow, and cutover risk before switching systems.
WMS RFP template
Shortlist vendors with questions that expose implementation, workflow, support, and integration fit.
Warehouse KPI worksheet
Turn receiving, picking, inventory, and shipping metrics into a buyer-ready baseline.
ROI calculator
Estimate labor savings, payback period, and rollout economics before the trial planning conversation.