The Food and Drug Administration is poised to release the first of its new regulations since the passage of the Food Safety and Modernization Act, and the food industry is preparing its own actions to improve overall food safety and prevent foodborne illnesses. Food Manufacturing, Manufacturing Business Technology's sister publication, spoke with Mike Lee of Airclic about some of the new technology available to manufacturers for enhancing food safety.
Q: Foodborne illnesses cost the United States billions each year. How does foodborne illness directly impact a food manufacturer’s bottom line?
A: Foodborne illness not only costs the food industry billions of dollars each year, it can also ruin the lives of those affected. The food manufacturer of a recalled item takes a severe loss of profits when dealing with a recall — from a halt in production to an indefinite boycott from consumers.
Many Americans remember the salmonella outbreak in peanut butter in early 2009. This national recall cost America's peanut producers approximately $1 billion in lost production and sales. Peanut Corp., the company manufacturing the contaminated peanut butter, was even forced to file for bankruptcy.
Recalls have a negative impact on a food manufacturer’s bottom line and also the company’s reputation, which can lead to an uphill battle in restoring brand integrity and regaining consumer trust.
The aftershock of a food recall can take years from which to recover, but there are ways in which manufacturers can protect consumers and their brands from the devastating consequences of a recall.
Q: What can food manufacturers do to help reduce the costs and negative impacts of foodborne illness?
A: One of the simplest ways for food manufacturers to reduce the costs and negative impacts of foodborne illness is to implement mobile supply chain software. Mobile software gives food manufacturers complete traceability, with the ability to track food through each step of the distribution process. This is critical for being able to take immediate action in the event of a recall, giving operators the ability to locate contaminated products quickly and efficiently. This also prevents unnecessary disposal of uncontaminated products by ensuring operators can quickly locate the effected items.
Regardless if there is a recall or not, organizations leveraging mobile technology see a positive return on their investment in mobile technology from the ability to have complete control of their inventory management processes. When a crisis is averted or quickly addressed, the associated costs and damages are reduced significantly.
Q: How can mobile technology improve traceability and prevent the spread of foodborne illness?
A: Through advanced barcode technology and easy-to-use scanning devices, mobile software products deliver the ability to track and trace each item of inventory at the fingertips of the food operator. As a result, previous processes that were manually paper-based are entirely automated, resulting in a faster, more effective and transparent process.
As barcodes are scanned, they are checked against an item master database to ensure they meet freshness requirements. This data is stored in real-time on a corporate inventory management system for fast, easy access, improving the operator’s ability to identify and remove a contaminated product in the event of an outbreak — and the speed of product removal is absolutely vital in ensuring consumers’ safety.
Real-time information in the event of an outbreak has a dramatic effect on the impact the outbreak has on the organization and consumers. With mobile software that provides instant traceability, food operators have the ability to take control of the situation quickly and effectively — with minimal impact on their bottom line.
Real-time expiration alerts available through mobile software products built specifically for the food industry simplify the ability to identify products that are nearly expired and have them transferred to another location that will be able to use them immediately — preventing spoilage and increasing revenue.
Q: How will this technology help food manufacturers meet the new FDA food safety regulations?
A: Mobile software built for the food industry allows operators to easily adhere to GS1 U.S. standards and comply with FDA food traceability requirements in real-time.
Real-time tracking from mobile software enables food operators to comply with the increasingly stringent FDA regulations without hindering the efficiency of operations. The recent FDA overhaul is the most aggressive reform within the food industry in nearly 80 years. With mobile software, the food industry is able to switch to a more efficient way of tracking its products seamlessly, with a small investment in a product that is available for any mobile device.
Q: What other steps can food manufacturers take to improve food safety?
There is a universal goal within in the food industry is to prevent food recalls and keep consumers safe. The best way to do this is to simply know the location of your product at all times. The more data available about the origin of food — where it was picked, what box it went into, and where it is going — the easier it is for businesses to maintain a fresh, safe inventory.
Interview By Lindsey Coblentz, Associate Editor, Food Manufacturing
