Every year, millions of people get sick or die as a result of food poisoning, which is a major threat to public health. With its strict requirements for food handling, storage, processing, and manufacturing, food standards serve as preventative measures in this context.
According to estimates from the World Health Organization (WHO), 600 million people globally get foodborne illnesses annually.
Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) are two food safety management systems that can be put into place to lower the hazards of contaminated food and lessen the incidence of foodborne diseases.
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To comply with these criteria, firms must use strong food safety management systems, closely watch and manage crucial control points, and maintain good cleanliness. prevent diseases and save lives, companies must comply with these guidelines.
Every customer has the right to food safety in addition to happiness. This begs the question, "What is the reason behind the importance of food safety?" for manufacturers in the food industry.
With the potential to negatively impact both human health and the bottom line for company owners, this component of the food supply chain attempts to safeguard consumers from foodborne diseases and food poisoning.
What is Food Safety?
The term "food safety" describes the appropriate food handling techniques used in the processing, distribution, storage, and preparation of the products you work with in your food business. Food safety topics for manufacturing is essential to preserving and improving consumers' health.
The integrity of food safety is a problem that traverses the whole food supply chain. From farming to processing, packaging, and finally, to the consumer's plate, there is a food safety production life cycle.
Knowing what might compromise the integrity and stability of food is essential for controlling food safety.
Many different types of food contamination can happen at any point in your food supply chain, jeopardizing food safety.
In that order, you should know that all essential processes are vulnerable to contamination from biological, chemical, physical, or radioactive sources in food items. Issues like food poisoning and food-related injuries might arise in the absence of an effective food safety management regime.
What makes food safe is the set of procedures and a robust food safety culture that can be put into place to ensure that food items remain healthy. Public health requires that every link in the food supply chain adhere to predetermined food safety standards.
In order to effectively control the spread of infectious diseases, it is important to follow proper handling and industrial processes. These include cooking foods to the correct internal temperature using a food thermometer, avoiding cross-contamination by properly segregating them to prevent contact, and storing chilled foods at cold temperatures.
When it comes to the safety of food, customers are also very important. Particularly with raw materials, buyers are obliged to adhere to the product's storage and processing instructions.
The desire for high-quality, safe goods and the expression of concerns in the event of food safety problems are two ways in which customers actively participate in ensuring food safety.
Why is Food Safety Important?
To ensure that all members of the community have sufficient access to food that is both healthy and delicious, importance of food safety is non-negotiable.
One in six Americans suffer food poisoning every year, leading to 128,000 hospitalizations and 3,000 fatalities, according to government statistics.
The vast majority of food poisoning and intoxication cases are the result of biological contaminations produced by harmful microorganisms like bacteria.
Pathogens in food can lead to a range of moderate to severe health complications, such as diarrhea, vomiting, stomach discomfort, or even crippling infections and chronic disorders.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the top five food-borne illness-causing microorganisms are:
- Norovirus
- Salmonella, nontyphoidal
- Clostridium perfringens
- Campylobacter spp.
- Staphylococcus aureus
The Importance of Food Safety in Food and Drink Manufacturing
A food manufacturer's credibility is directly impacted by how seriously they take the importance of food safety.
Contaminated food products could make their way into the market if an efficient food safety procedure is not put in place. Contaminated products can cause significant interruptions in the operations of a food manufacturing company leading to food recalls.
A food recall can cost businesses a lot of money. Most importantly, it will damage public perception of your brand, which will last for a long time. The price tag for this could even exceed that of the food recalls.
Therefore, mportance of food safety should remain a top priority for every food-producing organization. It is an essential investment that should not be overlooked.
- Consumer Health: The contamination and subsequent spread of foodborne infections can originate from hygiene violations, which pose serious threats to the health of consumers.
- Brand Reputation: An organization's credibility can take a serious hit with only one instance involving personal cleanliness. Building and maintaining consumer trust is a constant challenge.
- Regulatory Compliance in Food Indusry: To guarantee the quality and safety of food and drink items, stringent hygiene laws and standards are implemented worldwide.
- Reduces Economic Loss: Manufacturers could incur substantial financial damages in the event of food contamination occurrences. Product recalls, legal bills missed sales opportunities, and possible litigation all contribute to this total.
- Protects Employees: Both customers and industrial workers are safeguarded by maintaining food safety. Lost productivity and increased absenteeism can occur when foodborne infections spread among workers.
Key Aspects of Food Safety in Manufacturing
- Facility Cleanliness: It is crucial to maintain a hygienic manufacturing facility to avoid the spread of any potential cross-contamination. There must be food manufacturing sanitation stations, regular cleaning schedules, and stringent procedures.
- Personal Hygiene: Keeping to cleanliness regulations is an important responsibility of employees. It is imperative that you wash your hands thoroughly, use protective clothing, and keep yourself clean at all times.
- Food Handling: It is essential to follow correct food handling procedures, such as keeping raw foods at the correct temperature and avoiding touching cooked meals directly.
- Equipment Maintenance: In order to keep pollutants and germs from accumulating, machinery and equipment should be cleaned and disinfected on a regular basis.
- Quality Control: Inspection and testing of raw materials, in-process items, and completed goods are all part of quality control procedures to guarantee they are safe and up to par.
- Supply Chain Hygiene: To avoid introducing toxic or otherwise unsuitable substances into the production process, suppliers should follow strict hygiene regulations.
Global Initiatives for Food Safety
Several international organizations and projects play crucial roles when it comes to raising awareness about the importance of food safety, establishing standards, and fostering cooperation on a global level. Notable worldwide efforts in food safety topics for manufacturing include the following:
Codex Alimentarius
Established by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO), the Codex Alimentarius Commission is an internationally renowned entity that creates norms, standards, and guidelines for the international food trade to guarantee its quality.
A number of issues are addressed by these regulations, including as pollutants, food additives, labeling, and cleanliness.
While not definitive, codex standards do provide national regulatory compliance in food industry bodies with a framework from which to craft their own rules.
Codex encourages uniformity in food safety procedures worldwide by harmonizing international standards; this facilitates business while protecting public health.
World Health Organisation (WHO)
The World Health Organization (WHO) is a frontrunner in international policy regarding health. The World Health Organization (WHO) offers assistance to its member nations in the form of scientific knowledge, research, and recommendations about food safety. Food safety and the prevention of food-borne illnesses are domains in which it significantly influences policy, legislation, and strategy development. Among WHO's initiatives are:
a) Evaluating possible risks.
b) Offering member nations technical assistance.
c) Working together with global allies to tackle new problems in food safety as they arise.
The organization's commitment to raising awareness about the need to eat only safe foods has a major impact on bettering public health across the world.
Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)
In order to promote and develop food safety standards, the World Health Organization (WHO) collaborates with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Sustainable agricultural practices, food quality, and food safety management systems are some of FAO's main fields of focus in the context of food safety.
To help countries adopt effective food safety measures, it offers information distribution, capacity-building initiatives, and technical assistance.
Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations have a major influence on food safety procedures across the world, even if they aren't a worldwide initiative. Labeling, inspection, and quality control are all aspects of food safety that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) establishes and enforces nationwide.
The worldwide food supply chain is deeply connected, thus its rules and regulations often impact food safety procedures in other nations.
How to Comply With the FDA's Current Good Manufacturing Practices (CGMPS)?
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) enforces regulations known as Current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMPs) to ensure that any food, medicine, medical device, or cosmetic product is made, processed, packaged, or stored in a way that meets the necessary quality standards for safety and effectiveness.
Manufacturing facilities are required to adhere to cGMP requirements to ensure the safety and quality of their products by avoiding contamination, mixing up ingredients, and making additional errors. Here are a few pointers to help you meet cGMP requirements:
- Develop and implement a quality management system (QMS): A quality management system (QMS) is a collection of documents, rules, and procedures that represent a company's approach to guaranteeing the security and excellence of its goods.
Compliance with current good manufacturing practice (cGMP) regulations, staff education and development programs, and protocols for dealing with non-standard processes should all be part of the quality management system (QMS).
- Conduct regular internal audits: It is possible to find areas of non-compliance and take remedial action after conducting audits on a regular basis. All areas of cGMP compliance, including hygiene, equipment upkeep, employee education, and documentation, should be audited.
- Ensure proper equipment maintenance: To keep contamination and manufacturing defects at bay, it is essential to clean, calibrate, and repair production equipment on a regular basis. The manufacturer should establish a maintenance program and check that all equipment is in good working order before using it.
- Monitor and control the manufacturing environment: Contamination can originate from a variety of places in a manufacturing facility, including the air, water, and even employees.
It is the responsibility of manufacturers to instruct their employees on proper environmental monitoring, cleaning, and sanitization protocols.
- Implement a comprehensive documentation system: Compliance with cGMP regulations relies on thorough and accurate documentation.
The results of tests, production logs, and records of individual batches are all part of the comprehensive records that manufacturers are required to maintain. Methods for dealing with deviations and recalls should also be included in the documentation.
- Provide employee training: Conduct regular testing and analysis: Manufacturers should conduct regular testing and analysis of raw materials, in-process materials, and finished products to ensure that they meet the required specifications for safety and quality.
- Establish a recall plan: As a precaution, manufacturers should have a strategy to swiftly and efficiently get their recalled products off store shelves.
The recall strategy needs to include steps for alerting the FDA and consumers, in addition to how to dispose of the recalled goods.
The Role of Technology in Food Safety
The significance of technology in ensuring the importance of food safety in the last several years. It has simplified the process of attaining industry-wide high standards of food safety. Among the many developments are innovative temperature monitoring devices.
Another way in which technology has enhanced the security of food is by the use of automated cleaning procedures. Data can now be collected in real-time by food manufacturing businesses. Businesses can readily keep tabs on their activities thanks to this.
Another benefit of technology is the ease with which businesses can now spot possible dangers. It is now much easier to deal with situations before they escalate because of this.
With the help of technology, food is now safer at every stage of production, from processing to packing and delivery.
Xenia is a powerful EHS in manufacturing for daily execution and food safety automation that was developed to simplify compliance with HACCP and FSMA.
Keep tabs on your progress towards GFSI, SQF, BRC, FSSC 22000, and other customer compliance standards, as well as non-regulatory and regulatory compliance in food industry requirements, with the help of robust real-time analytics and alarms for food safety programs.
Importance of Food Safety - Bottomline
Ensuring food safety is becoming harder as the number of regulations requiring HACCP plans and similar programs grows.
Concerned about getting your food safety system in line with all the latest regulations? Food safety consulting is an area of expertise for food consultants. They have the technical know-how to help you comply with all the food safety licenses and programs.
Food consultants have been involved in every facet of the food business and have a wealth of information to share. Improve your profitability, get services tailored to business requirements, and remain ahead of the competition with an EHS in manufacturing.
Streamline Food Safety, Maintenance and Daily Operations with Xenia
Xenia unifies food and beverage operations with tools to standardize, track and measure work across every team, asset and facility.
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Our customers love Xenia's robust use cases including:
Food Safety Management
🌡️ Automatic Temperature Monitoring
Xenia leverages temperature sensors that utilize both Bluetooth and LoRaWAN technology to transmit data reliably to your Xenia account. The monitors work continuously in a range of 40°C to 125°C and an accuracy of +/- 0.4°C. When an temperature deviates from a pre-set acceptable range, management is notified to investigate and resolve.
🔎 Smart Inspection Workflows
Xenia's operations template builder has built in conditional logic into each step. This allows you to trigger actions based on a form response such as creating a corrective action on a failed inspection step, sending a notification to management for out of range meter readings, and much more.
✨ Corrective Actions
Operationalize inspections with fast work order assignment arising from a failed inspection step. All corrective data is stored in the checklist submission for auditing and accountability.
📋 Compliance Reports
View live dashboard summaries of tasks, employee performance, template submissions and more. Filter, organize and export compliance reports to PDF and Excel formats to simplify compliance management.
Maintenance Management
🛠️ Work Orders
Create work orders with associated team, asset, location, priority, category and due date. View live progress reports on each work order, chat with teams, and review resulting template submission, images and notes to improve operations.
🧰 Preventive Maintenance
Create a preventive maintenance calendar to ensure asset uptime is not compromised. Attach images, templates, videos and notes to every task and assign to a team or individual for completion.
📲 QR Codes
Generate and attach QR codes to equipment and facility locations to enable fast and accurate inspections and data logs.
📁 Equipment Work History
View work history for every asset and sub asset in Xenia. Review performance data and enable corrective actions to improve your operation.
Daily Operations
✔️ Checklists & SOPs
Create checklists, SOPs, Inspections and Data Logs to power accountability, training and staff clarity on every task.
📆 Recurring Tasks
Create recurring schedules for review meetings, inspections, cleanings and more.
💪 Team Accountability
Defeat pencil whipping and disorganized responsibility assessments by standardizing operations with Xenia. Track time, collect photos, send messages and ensure high quality work.
📊 Team Performance Reporting
Use Xenia's analytics dashboards to view staff work reports. Filter by asset, location, category or due date and export the report in PDF or Excel
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