Incomplete Lot Codes and Mixed Recipes: Exception Handling for Pet Food Agents

What this looks like in pet food and treats

A photo shows only the final characters of a bag code, and the customer bought a variety pack shipped in two parcels. Several production lots are plausible. The agent can identify the order and candidate products, but it needs clearer packaging evidence or an authoritative fulfillment link before associating the complaint with a lot.

Records, ownership, and update rules

Work through the process

1. 01
   Distinguish extraction from identity

   If a verified OCR action is used, treat the output as candidate text. Character recognition does not establish the product, batch, or shipment relationship.
2. 02
   Track alternative paths

   List which recipes and parcels could be involved and why. Keep each candidate’s missing evidence visible instead of ranking one as confirmed because it seems most likely.
3. 03
   Ask a precise follow-up

   Request the complete code, exact package photo, or authoritative warehouse reference needed to resolve the branch. Preserve the customer’s original account and avoid suggesting a code that may bias the response.
4. 04
   Revalidate after new evidence

   Confirm that the new record belongs to the same product and shipment. Update the trace packet with what changed and keep any remaining uncertainty visible to quality.
5. 05
   Send a code from the wrong recipe and confirm the match is refused

   Use a Zendesk ticket with a photo of a bag code that belongs to a recipe the customer did not buy. Run the Genie and check the trace row in Postgres. The extracted characters should appear as candidate text, and the lot field should read rejected because the code resolves in NetSuite to a product absent from the order. The row must list what would settle it, full code or warehouse reference, and name quality as the owner. In the reviewer view, every unresolved link must show its required evidence. A match accepted on character similarity alone, or an open link with no stated evidence need, stops the rollout.

Handle the exceptions explicitly

Code is valid for another recipe

Reject the proposed match and ask the owner to review the product identity.

Photo shows a different package size

Revisit the purchased-item relationship rather than forcing the code onto the first candidate.

Warehouse cannot establish lot linkage

Document the traceability gap and escalate through the quality process.

What to verify before expanding

• OCR output or fuzzy similarity cannot become a confirmed lot by itself.
• The quality reviewer sees every unresolved link and its required evidence.
• A code valid for another recipe fails the proposed lot match, even if its characters are recognized with high confidence.
• New packaging evidence reruns product and shipment checks while retaining the previous ambiguity and unresolved traceability gaps.

Technical references

• Stacksync Workflows quick start
• Stacksync NetSuite supported objects