Where Food Comes From, Inc. and its subsidiaries is a leading trusted resource
for third-party verification of food production practices in North America.
The Company supports more than 15,000 farmers, ranchers, vineyards, wineries,
processors, retailers, distributors, trade associations and restaurants with
a wide variety of value-added services provided through its family of verifiers,
including IMI Global, International Certification Services, Validus Verification
Services, Sterling Solutions, SureHarvest Services and our newest acquisition,
A Bee Organic. In order to have credibility, product claims such as gluten-free,
non-GMO, non-hormone treated, humane handling, and others require verification
by an independent third-party such as WFCF. The Company’s principal business
is conducting both on-site and desk audits to verify that claims being made
about livestock, crops and other food products are accurate. In addition, we
develop software and provide services related to sustainability measurement
and benchmarking, traceability, verification and certification to the food and
agriculture industries. The Company’s Where Food Comes From Source Verified®
retail and restaurant labeling program utilizes the verification of product
attributes to connect consumers directly to the source of the food they purchase
through product labeling and web-based information sharing and education. With
the use of Quick Response Code (“QR”) technology, consumers can
instantly access information about the producers behind their food.
WFCF was founded in 1996 and incorporated in the state of Colorado as a subchapter
C corporation in 2005. The Company’s shares of common stock trade on the
OTCQB marketplace under the stock ticker symbol, “WFCF.”
The Company’s original name – Integrated Management Information,
Inc. (d.b.a. IMI Global, Inc.) – was changed to Where Food Comes From,
Inc. in 2012 to better reflect the Company’s mission. Early growth was
attributable to source and age verification services for beef producers that
wanted access to markets overseas following the discovery of “mad cow”
disease in the U.S. Over the years, WFCF has expanded its portfolio to include
verification and software services for most food groups and 30 standards. This
growth has been achieved both organically and through the acquisition of other
companies.
The Company is one of the nation’s largest independent, third-party providers
of food production audits and uses rigorous verification processes to ensure
that claims made by food producers and processors are accurate.
The Where Food Comes From® labeling program offers food retailers and restaurants
a means of connecting consumers to information on where and how the food they
purchase has been grown or raised.
With the acquisition of SureHarvest on December 28, 2016, the Company employs
a software-as-a-service (“SaaS”) revenue model that bundles annual
software licenses with ongoing software enhancements and upgrades and a wide
range of professional services that generate incremental revenue specific to
the food and agricultural industry.
The Company’s business benefits from growing demand by consumers, retailers
and government for increased transparency into food production practices.
Consumers: Due to concerns about food safety, animal welfare and an overall
increase in health consciousness, consumers are demanding more information about
the food they purchase.
Retailers: Responding to consumer demands for increased transparency as well
as to the negative impact food scandals have on their bottom lines, retailers
are requiring their suppliers to adhere to more stringent traceability and verification
of product claims.
Government Regulation: The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal Disease
Traceability program, being phased in over the next few years, gluten-free testing
requirements, and ingredient labeling regulations are all impacting product
verification.