Increasing regulation in food processing and three ways to increase compliance to standards
December 4, 2023
By Brady Worldwide, Inc. for the Blue Print
By Brady Worldwide, Inc. for the Blue Print
Three ways to enhance compliance on the production floor1. Create a visual workspaceVisual work spaces have long been embraced by traditional manufacturers as part of their Lean
or 5S programs. Visuals help ensure work is performed in a consistent manner leading to better process controls that ultimately enhance quality. However, due to food safety concerns, food processors have historically shunned the use of signs, tags and labels to provide visual cues on the processing floor. Materials typically used to create labels and signs simply could not stand up to the wash down environment. Recent innovations in metal detectable and wash down resistant signs, tags and labels have opened the door to new possibilities. Given the complexity of regulations and the need for standard process to drive food safe operations, food processors could benefit tremendously by providing location specific information related to procedures and protocols that today reside in office binders far away from the production floor. Some potential visuals specific to food processing include:
2. On the job training and visual cuesTraining frontline employees on the appropriate food safety protocol and food safe operations best practices poses a daunting challenge for many food processors.
High turnover, diversity of spoken languages, reading comprehension and multiple production shifts can all be obstacles to having a highly trained work force. But training your frontline employees is critical. Not only is it required by government agencies and GFSI schemes, your frontline employees are the people who make food safety happen. While classroom training has long been the norm, more food processors are implementing an on-the-job training model to improve training compliance. A recent study presented by Alchemy Systems indicated that targeted classroom training resulted in an 82 percent compliance rate to the trained material. When the training was supported with on-the-job training and corrective observations, compliance rose to 94 percent. As it’s nearly impossible to have supervisors present at all times, on-the-job training programs can be supported by visual instruction on the processing floor. Not only can the visuals be used as part of the training program, they remain in place even after the supervisor has left to remind employees of the appropriate procedures. 3. Automate your inspection documentationGovernment regulations and GFSI schemes require numerous inspections and supporting documentation to ensure implementation of food safe procedures and compliance to standards.
Inspections related to line clearance for production of safe food, sanitation, equipment maintenance, equipment calibration and pest management often include hundreds of inspection points. The demand to document the inspection and then be able to generate that documentation during audits can be extremely challenging using a paper-based system. Accurate and up to date records are critical for regulatory inspections and certification. Under FDA lack of records is probable cause of a failed or non-existent required system. Automating these inspections using software designed to support your compliance efforts can have multiple benefits for food processors.
Over the course of the last 30 years...Food safety has become a top concern among consumers, governments, food processors, and food distributors. Several high profile food recalls combined with the proliferation of media access have driven increased awareness to the safety of the food supply chain.
As a result, governments have passed new regulations, retail consortiums have adopted new standards, and food processors are searching for how to improve compliance to meet these new standards. Greater public focus on food safetyEven as technology improves, food recalls still populate the headlines. Occasionally, a larger epidemic draws national attention:
Publicity around food recalls has had a measurable impact on consumer confidence. In the Consumer Food and Products Insight Survey conducted by Deloitte in 2011, 73% of respondents stated that they were more concerned about the food they eat now compared to five years ago. Government statistics highlight challengeIn the United States, the CDC estimates that each year roughly 1 in 6 Americans (or 48 million people) get sick, 128,000 are hospitalized, and 3,000 die of foodborne diseases. However, CDC studies indicate that food safety measures put into place have thus far had little effect on the total number of foodborne illnesses. In response to the increased focus on food safety, governments around the world passed new legislation aimed at improving food safety.
Industry-driven standards
Concurrent with the emerging food safety requirements in Europe, there was a growing fatigue as retailers and brand manufacturers audited factories against their countless-in-house standards, each developed in isolation and with no consideration of convergence. The results showed no consistency.
The CEOs of the world’s food retailers, working through their independent network CIES – The Food Business Forum, now the Consumer Goods Forum (CGF), agreed to take collaborative action. In May 2000, the Global Food Safety Initiative, a non-profit foundation, was founded. Today, GFSI benchmarks food safety schemes such as Safe Quality Food (SQF), British Retail Consortium (BRC), International Featured Standards (IFS) and Food Safety System Certification 22000 (FSSC 22000) to the GFSI standard. The impact on food processorsAs a result of the increasing public focus on food safety, government regulations and industry standards, food processors find themselves under more scrutiny today than ever before. Food processors are required to have documented systems for nearly every aspect of their operations, they are required to train all employees on these protocol and they are subject to audit from government agencies, certifying bodies and customers.
The real challenge becomes ensuring compliance on the processing floor where food safety happens. While there are plenty of resources available to help Food Safety & Quality Assurance managers understand and develop the appropriate protocol, it can be much more challenging to bring these protocols to life on the production floor. High turnover, multiple spoken dialects, varied reading levels and the demand for a sanitary environment can make training and reinforcing best practices extremely difficult. Here to stayWith the increased public focus on food safety leading to more government regulations and industry standards, it’s safe to say that the changes to the regulatory environment are here to stay. Food processors’ ability to drive compliance throughout their organization will only become a more critical component to running a food safe operation. Implementing proven best practices to improve your compliance efforts can ensure sustained compliance, even when regulations continue to change.
Articles & References
Content originally from Brady Worldwide, Inc. Reused here with permission.
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