Lots and Serials¶
Track products at the batch and individual item level using GS1 lot numbers (AI 10) and serial numbers (AI 21).
Overview¶
GTIN1 supports two levels of granularity beyond the trade item:
- Lots (batches) identify a production run or group of items manufactured together. They use GS1 Application Identifier 10.
- Serials identify a single, unique item. They use GS1 Application Identifier 21.
Both lots and serials are linked to a parent trade item and get their own resolvable Digital Link URIs, QR codes, and hosted product pages.
Lot (Batch) Management¶
Creating a Lot¶
Navigate to a trade item in your organization dashboard and select Add Lot. Each lot requires:
| Field | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Lot identifier | Yes | Your batch or lot number, up to 20 characters (AI 10). Must contain only alphanumeric characters and the allowed GS1 special characters. |
| Production date | No | When the batch was produced |
| Expiration date | No | When the batch expires |
| Best before date | No | Best before / sell by date |
Lot identifiers must be unique within a trade item. Attempting to create a duplicate lot identifier returns an error.
FSMA 204 Traceability Fields¶
If your organization has FSMA 204 enabled and the trade item is designated as a Food Traceability List (FTL) item, lots gain additional traceability fields:
| Field | Required for FTL | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Harvest date | Yes (or production date) | AI 7007 harvest start date |
| Harvest end date | No | AI 7007 harvest end date (for date ranges) |
| Growing location | Recommended | The physical growing/harvesting location (AI 416) |
FTL lot validation
For trade items marked as FTL, lots require either a harvest date or a production date. GTIN1 enforces this at creation time to maintain FSMA 204 compliance.
Lot Fields in Digital Link URIs¶
Once a lot exists, it is resolvable via its Digital Link URI. The lot identifier appears as AI 10 in the path:
When FSMA 204 fields are present, the Digital Link can also include:
- Harvest date as AI 7007 (formatted as YYMMDD):
- Production location GLN as AI 416:
These additional AIs are automatically included when you generate a QR code for a lot that has harvest and growing location data.
Listing and Filtering Lots¶
The lot list view for a trade item supports filtering and pagination (20 lots per page). Use the filter controls to search by lot identifier, date range, or other criteria.
Editing and Deleting Lots¶
You can update lot details or delete a lot from the organization dashboard. Deleting a lot also removes its associated serial numbers and traceability events.
Permissions required
Creating, editing, and deleting lots requires the Contributor role or higher within the organization.
Serial Number Management¶
Creating a Serial¶
Serial numbers represent individual items. Navigate to a trade item and select Add Serial. Each serial requires:
| Field | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Serial number | Yes | The unique serial identifier, up to 20 characters (AI 21) |
| Lot | No | Optional association with a lot. The lot must belong to the same trade item. |
| Production date | No | When the individual item was produced |
| Expiration date | No | When the individual item expires |
| Best before date | No | Best before / sell by date |
Serial numbers must be unique within a trade item. If a serial is associated with a lot, the combination of lot and serial must also be unique.
Serial Fields in Digital Link URIs¶
Serial numbers appear as AI 21 in the Digital Link path:
If the serial is associated with a lot, the lot identifier is also included:
When the associated lot has FSMA 204 traceability data (harvest date, growing location), those AIs are automatically included in QR codes generated for the serial as well.
Serial Number Pools via EPCIS¶
For high-volume serialization, GTIN1 provides serial number pool allocation through the EPCIS API. This ensures unique serial assignments across your entire organization without conflicts between production lines or facilities.
See the EPCIS API interactive reference for details on serial pool allocation endpoints.
Generating QR Codes for Lots and Serials¶
Every lot and serial has its own QR code that encodes the full Digital Link URI. To generate one:
- Navigate to the lot or serial in your organization dashboard.
- Click Generate QR Code to open the QR code builder.
- Customize the output format, error correction level, and other options.
- Download the QR code in SVG, PDF, or EPS format.
The QR code builder is also accessible programmatically:
Label Sheets for Lots and Serials¶
You can generate a full-page PDF label sheet (63 labels per page) for any lot or serial. This is useful for printing QR codes on adhesive label stock for physical products.
/org/{org-slug}/generator/lot/{lot-slug}/label-sheet/
/org/{org-slug}/generator/serial/{serial-slug}/label-sheet/
See QR Codes and Barcodes for full details on label sheet options and format customization.
How Lots and Serials Enhance the Product Page¶
When a consumer scans a QR code for a lot or serial, the hosted product page on GTIN1 displays additional context beyond the base trade item information:
Lot-level context:
- Lot identifier and production date
- Expiration or best-before date
- Harvest date and growing location (for FTL items)
- Traceability status (complete or incomplete for FSMA 204)
- Links to recall information if applicable
Serial-level context:
- Serial number and associated lot (if any)
- Production and expiration dates specific to the individual item
- Full traceability chain inherited from the associated lot
This means a single trade item can have hundreds of lots, each resolving to the same product page but with batch-specific details shown dynamically based on the scanned QR code.
Bulk Operations¶
For managing lots and serials at scale, see Bulk Import and Export. GTIN1 supports CSV import of lots and serials, as well as bulk export of QR codes and data.