Maria is a fictional, AI-assisted character. All images are AI-generated illustrations.

The Evidence Ledger

A story can sound precise, moving, and plausible without being established. Every claim in an Aware of My Food journey carries one of four editorial labels, so a beautiful possibility never quietly becomes a fact.

Verified

An appropriate accessible source directly supports the specific claim. It does not mean the entire surrounding story is proven.

Reported

A producer, label, organization, interview, or other named source made the claim. The attribution stays attached.

Inferred

Documented context supports a reasoned estimate or interpretation. It remains an inference.

Unknown

Evidence is absent, inaccessible, conflicting, or insufficient. Unknown is not a blank to decorate.

These are editorial labels, not regulatory classifications. They are informed by how GS1 distinguishes product-, batch/lot-, and instance-level identification, and how FDA defines tracking events and data elements—but they describe this page's writing discipline, nothing more.

Why it matters

A barcode may offer a clue; it is never automatic proof of an exact farm, worker, route, or package history. A country on a label is a reported claim about scope, not a farm address. A photograph cannot verify a crop variety, a soil practice, or an environmental outcome. The ledger keeps product identity separate from exact-package traceability, and required supply-chain records separate from what a consumer can actually see.

Official source library