Walmart Traceability Requirements

Walmart requires every food supplier to provide an Advanced Shipment Notification (ASN) with Key Data Elements for all shipments. Every pallet must carry an SSCC-18 barcode linked to the ASN. For produce on the Food Traceability List, this isn't optional — it's a condition of doing business. And Walmart isn't waiting for the FDA's July 2028 enforcement date. Their requirements are active now.

Walmart Compliance Deadline

Active now — Walmart began enforcing traceability requirements for FTL products as of August 1, 2025, with expansion to all food products ongoing.

Scope

All food products entering Walmart facilities. FTL items (including most fresh produce) have the strictest requirements. Walmart has stated its intent to expand traceability to all foods, not just those on the FDA's Food Traceability List.

What Walmart requires — and how FieldToFile delivers

SSCC-18 barcodes on every pallet

Every pallet shipped to Walmart must carry a scannable SSCC-18 barcode that uniquely identifies the logistics unit and links to the ASN.

FieldToFile: FieldToFile auto-generates valid GS1 SSCC-18 codes for every pallet. No manual entry, no sequence gaps, no transposed digits.

PTI-compliant case labels

Fresh produce shipped to Walmart must have standardized case labels consistent with the Produce Traceability Initiative, including GTIN, lot code, and pack date.

FieldToFile: Every pallet tag FieldToFile generates is PTI-compliant with proper GS1-128 barcodes, lot codes, and harvest data built in.

Advanced Shipment Notification (ASN) with KDEs

Walmart requires an EDI ASN containing all mandatory Key Data Elements — including lot/batch codes, date codes, and source information — for every shipment.

FieldToFile: FieldToFile captures every KDE at each Critical Tracking Event (harvest, packing, shipping) so your data is complete and audit-ready when you need to generate ASN data.

Traceability lot codes

Every lot of produce must have a unique Traceability Lot Code (TLC) that can be traced back to the growing area, harvest date, and packer.

FieldToFile: FieldToFile assigns and tracks TLCs automatically. Lot codes link back to commodity, variety, harvest date, growing region, and GS1 data — set it up once, use it every shipment.

Partner/co-packer traceability

If you pack for other growers, Walmart still expects full traceability on every pallet — regardless of who owns the produce.

FieldToFile: FieldToFile's partner packing feature lets you print under your partner's brand with their GS1 data. Their pallets, their traceability record, their quota — zero friction for you.

What happens if you can't provide this

Walmart may hold or reject freight and levy penalties for insufficient traceability information.

Repeat non-compliance may cause Walmart to review its relationship with suppliers who routinely fail to comply.

Rejected loads are returned at the supplier's cost — crew time, truck time, and produce quality all lost.

Loss of Walmart shelf space means losing access to 23.6% of the US grocery market.

The bottom line

Walmart isn't waiting for 2028 and neither should you. Their traceability requirements are active, enforced, and getting stricter. FieldToFile gives you compliant pallet labels, complete KDE records, and audit-ready traceability — from your browser, in 4 minutes per truckload.

Evaluating traceability solutions? See how FieldToFile compares to spreadsheets, ERP systems, and other produce traceability tools.

Shipping produce to Walmart? Here's what they require.