EPC is an international trade standard designed to drive RFID use forward in the UHF (ultra high frequency) range. The standard was developed so that manufacturers are using compatible devices and RFID technologies.

The royalty-free standards developed by EPCglobal are the foundations in the continuing construction of a global supply chain information network that combines RFID technology, existing communications network infrastructure and a system called Electronic Product Code (EPC), a number for uniquely identifying an item.

A unified data system would allow changes in information about product sizes, weight, name, price, classification, transport requirements and volumes to be immediately transmitted along the supply chain. For example it would allow shippers to immediately know if the amount of product stacked on a pallet had changed, or give a retailer time to adjust display space.

The system is being built to help companies save money throughout the supply chain by using the Global Data Synchronization Network (GDSN). Nestle, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Hormel Foods, Kraft, Unilever, Wegmans Food Markets and Sara Lee are among the food companies that have signed up to implement the system.

In a boost for the standard, EPCglobal announced this month that the ISO has incorporated its Generation 2 RFID air interface protocol into its ISO/IEC 18000-6 Amendment 1 as Type C on UHF RFID.

"This is a significant milestone because it provides recognition of the work that the EPCglobal community is doing to build user-driven technical standards to advance the adoption of EPC/RFID technologies in supply chains throughout the world," stated Chris Adcock, president of EPCglobal.

About a dozen RFID readers, tags and integrated circuits have been certified as Gen 2 compliant by EPCglobal and are commercially available.

The standard was initially developed by more than 60 technology companies and describes the core capabilities required to meet the performance needs set by the end user community.

"The publication of this Amendment to ISO/IEC 18000-6 gives the EPCglobal UHF Gen 2 specification global approval and makes it available to an even wider range of applications," said Steve Halliday, chairman of the ISO sub-group responsible for the standard. "This is the first of hopefully many opportunities for EPCglobal and ISO to cooperate."

Halliday's comment suggests that a wider range of applications is perceivable for the newly-accepted technology and specification, beyond electronic product coding, EPCglobal stated in a press release.

Quoting market research firm Venture Development Corporation (VDC), EPCglobal stated that the approval of the EPC Gen 2 standard by ISO "will further facilitate the global adoption of RFID, taking the industry a step closer to realising the technology's full potential within the supply chain."

This week the EU announced it was providing €7.5m toward a three-year project to develop and extend the use of RFID technology in a range of industries, including the food and drink sector, and using the EPCglobal based product information network.

EPCglobal is a subsidiary of GS1, a not-for-profit standards organisation entrusted with driving the global adoption of the technology and related network.

RFID uses a wireless system that helps enterprises track products, parts, expensive items and temperature-and time-sensitive goods. Transponders, or RFID tags, are attached to objects. The tag will identify itself when it detects a signal from a reader that emits a radio frequency transmission.

Each RFID tag carries information on it such as a serial number, model number, colour, place of assembly or other types of data. When these tags pass through a field generated by a compatible reader, they transmit this information back to the reader, thereby identifying the object.

RFID is being seen as a step up on bar codes by giving those in the supply chain the ability to track individual products and obtain more data.

The aim is to construct a global supply chain information network that combines RFID technology, existing communications network infrastructure and EPC, a number for uniquely identifying an item. Generation 2 refers to an updated version of the standard, which makes tracking and tracing systems compatible throughout the world.

RFID has long been touted as the future of logistics for all companies by allowing retailers and suppliers to track goods throughout the supply chain.

However high prices for tags and systems has held enthusiasm at bay. Privacy concerns have also limited its use at the consumer level. However mandates from such giant retailers as Wal-Mart and Metro are slowly forcing processors to make investments in the system.