Food packaging machine tracking food safety data using hash trees

A food packaging machine comprising:

• a hardware data processor that is:
• (1) operably connected to a packaging material supply module of the food packaging machine and configured to receive, from the packaging material supply module, a packaging material data record including information identifying a batch of the packaging material currently supplied to a filling module of the food packaging machine,
• (2) operably connected to a food supply module of the food packaging machine and configured to receive, from the food supply module, a food data record including information identifying a batch of the food currently supplied to the filling module,
• (3) configured to create a food data transaction derived from data comprising:
• (a) a time stamp identifying the time at which the filling module filled food supplied by the food supply module into a formed package;
• (b) a machine data record identifying the filling module or the food packaging machine;
• (c) at least a portion of the food data record;
• (d) at least a portion of the packaging material data record;
• and
• (e) data relating to an earlier food data transaction created on the same food packaging machine;
• (4) operably connected to a first network data processing system,
• (5) configured to send the food data transaction to the first network data processing system for the food data transaction to be appended to a packaged food production data hash tree, and
• (6) configured to verify at least one of the food data record or the packaging material data record with the packaged food production data hash tree before creating the food data transaction.