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About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation.*Related content and download information correct at time of download. Abstract Purpose -This paper aims to study different possibilities for implementing easy-to-use and cost-effective micro-systems to detect and trace expelled gases from rotten food. The paper covers various radio-frequency identification (RFID) technologies and gas sensors as the two promoting feasibilities for the tracing of packaged food. Monitoring and maintaining quality and safety of food in transport and storage from producer to consumer are the most important concerns in food industry. Many toxin gases, even in parts per billion ranges, are produced from corrupted and rotten food and can endanger the consumers' health. To overcome the issues, intelligent traceability of food products, specifically the packaged ones, in terms of temperature, humidity, atmospheric conditions, etc., has been paid attention to by many researchers. Design/methodology/approach -Food poisoning is a serious problem that affects thousands of people every year. Poisoning food must be recognized early to prevent a serious health problem. Contaminated food is usually detectable by odor. A small gas sensors and low-cost tailored to the type of food packaging and a communication device for transmitting alarm output to the consumer are key factors in achieving intelligent packaging. Findings -Conducting polymer composite, intrinsically conducting polymer and metal oxide conductivity gas sensors, metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) gas sensors offer excellent discrimination and lead the way for a new generation of "smart sensors" which will mould the future commercial markets for gas sensors. Originality/value -Small size, low power consumption, short response time, wide operating temperature, high efficiency and small area are most important features of introduced system for using in package food.