Developing a Digital-Ready Framework for Food Labeling Surveillance in Albania: A Sequential Exploratory Mixed Methods Approach

The alignment of national food safety protocols with the European Union legislation, specifically regarding Negotiation Chapter 12, remains a critical milestone for Albania’s accession. While legislative transposition has progressed significantly, an
implementation gap exists between statutory requirements and market enforcement. The purpose of this study was to develop a localized Compliance Assessment Tool (CAT) for the systematic auditing of food labeling. Utilizing a sequential exploratory
mixed methods design, qualitative requirements from national regulatory standards were quantitized into a tri-level scoring matrix (0, 0.5, 1). This tool was pilot-tested on two imported dairy matrices representing different labeling strategies: a glued translation sticker (Sample A) and an integrated multi-language label (Sample B). The audit revealed critical safety non-conformities, including a 2 o C storage temperature discrepancy and missing physical operator addresses. Furthermore, semantic non-compliance in date marking was identified across both samples. This research demonstrates that a weighted, digital-ready framework provides a scalable model for improving institutional transparency and risk-based surveillance in EU candidate markets.