A new technology developed in the ear tag of pigs will help prevent the casual dumping of dead swine, a practice that aroused food safety concerns earlier this year in Shanghai and several parts of China.

Shanghai Bio-tag Co has developed an electronic chip that has been, so far, embedded in the ear tags of 170,000 female pigs in Shanghai, eastday.com reported on May 14. Hopefully the technology will be promoted to all pig farms in Shanghai in two years.

The company could not be reached for a comment.

The chip – the size of a watermelon seed – will store information, including the animal's conditions while being raised, time of slaughter and vaccinations.

The tag will also allow carcasses to be traced. In March, more than 10,000 pig carcasses dumped by farmers were found floating on a river through Shanghai.