Partner Article

Food safety issues becoming harder to stomach

In the food industry, recalls have a far-reaching impact. Consumers can quickly lose their appetite for a brand and create losses for a company that go far beyond the cost of a recall alone. One of the biggest issues facing food manufacturers today is consumer understanding of food. In a recent survey of 4,500 people the FSA discovered that44 per cent still wash poultry before cooking, something it advises against.

Food recalls are usually a knock-on effect of a couple of key issues. Firstly, long (and often global) supply chains lead to variations in food safety standards. Secondly, the ongoing increase in production volumes in some areas, combined with the strict nature of regulations means that fewer sub-standard products are allowed to stay on the market and cross over into other territories – however, recent research by Stericycle ExpertSOLUTIONS found that 42% of affected products are usually caught by border authorities before they hit the market.. Finally, the dynamic nature of supply and demand for food globally means that some countries have heavy demands placed on them at short notice to either produce more or manage a surplus. The key side effect of this is often a drop in product quality.

As a result of instability in the food supply chain, it’s important that food manufacturers understand the customer perspective on food safety and recalls. Often, those worried about food safety will only look at the brand associated with food recalls and why it was initiated. They may also read an article or do some research, but if not, they are only left with two pieces of information: the brand and the reason. So, when shoppers next pass by a brand’s recalled products in the store, that product will be top of the shopping list of foods to avoid.

This leaves the opportunity for manufacturers to lead the way on food safety by informing customers of the need to understand FSA rules and guidelines. A short note at the end of a label can go a long way to improving customer knowledge of food safety. In doing this, manufacturers will demonstrate that they care about their customers and that their safety is a top priority.

Ways to Mitigate Risk During Food Recalls

• Removing product quickly from shelves ensures that no more will reach consumers
• Tracking products through smaller lot sizes and granular tracking abilities helps manufacturers identify what has been impacted and where it is in the distribution chain
• Optimising reverse logistics to retrieve the affected product from distributors and retailers can be achieved by working with recall experts who can identify where a product is, retrieve it and properly dispose of it

Many factors can lead to a recall and some of them don’t originate with the producer. However, evidently food safety is a growing concern. Therefore, there is a need to limit the scope of a recall and get past the event as quickly and uneventfully as possible to ensure the brand does not retain that blame for years to come.

The best way to avoid this long-term damage is by taking proper steps in planning and recall execution to ensure that it’s quick and efficient. Not only will this minimise the brand damage that can have a lasting effect on sales, but it will also minimise the disruption to normal business operations and soften the blow to an organisation’s bottom line.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Farzad Henareh .