We’re seeing more innovative food safety tools, thanks to the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).
If we go back a bit, as FSMA rolled out, food industry folk got busy putting together their new food safety plans. That included meeting Current Good Manufacturing Practices (CGMPs) and Preventive Controls. At the same time, R&D teams got to work, developing advanced food safety tools to help food manufacturers meet the new regulations.
Now, the last of the compliance dates and extensions are coming around. So, here’s a list of useful food safety tools — from bug blitzing to durable ducting. They just may be the ticket to getting your final FSMA compliances done.
(Note: these are not affiliates but a group of helpful food-safety resources.)
1. Take a food safety snapshot, X-ray-style
This x-ray detection technology article offers a cautionary tale of identifying contaminants in potatoes before reaching processing.
Detecting sharp, metal fragments (as well as natural defects, like “hollow hearts”), puts the x-ray technology ahead of the prevention pack.
You can request the case study here: http://bit.ly/eaglexray
2. Add some color to your food safety tools
According the Remco folk in this article, 3 to 5 (preferably primary) colors work best in most small-to-medium plants.
In this article, there are plenty of details on preventive color-coding for food processing plants. It includes information on creating a strategy, developing a plan, training employees — as well as tips for putting a color-coded system into action.
Read the full article here: http://bit.ly/preventivecolorcoding
3. Sniff out the sneakiest bugs
The bigger the storage space, the harder it is to regulate bugs. Or as Anna Berry (HACCP certified and entomologist with McCloud) puts it: “Finding tiny insects in bags of food hidden amongst pallets of ingredients deep within the rows of a warehouse or food processing facility is not an easy task.”
Pheromone monitoring to the rescue. This is a useful (and interesting) white paper on how pheromones help food manufacturing plants keep “stored product pests” under control in the hardest-to-reach places.
See the white paper: http://bit.ly/betterbugcontrol
4. Banish the bad guys with surrogate bacteria
Sound a little like a sci-fi thriller? Regardless, the folk at Novolyze recently won an award for their innovative work on ready-to-use surrogate microorganisms for food safety.
These super surrogates take out nightmare pathogens (like Salmonella, Listeria and E. coli) to keep food manufacturing products, from spices to cereals, safe.
You can visit their website here: http://bit.ly/surrogatebacteria
5. Choose a “softer” ducting alternative
From initial analysis to final preventive control plans, the nooks and crannies of a processing plant get a lot of attention — including the ventilation and ducting.
Problems show up in these areas due to metal deterioration and damage. The alternative (and what seems like a cost-effective retro-fit) is a durable fabric. The treated fabric reduces mold and microorganism growth and maintenance.
As food plants assess their surroundings to meet preventive controls, the fabric alternative ducting sounds like a good fit.
You can find out more here: http://bit.ly/fabricducting
Crossing the food safety plan finish line
As the final FSMA deadlines trickle by, it seems there’s less hype in the food industry news and social media streams. People know what they have to do. Ultimately, we hope this list will make any FSMA compliances – now, and in the future – easier.
Know any other food safety tools to add to the list — ones that made getting your food safety plan together easier and better? Let us know in the comments.
At Ingredient Exchange, we help food manufacturers offload their problem inventory. Whether off-spec, excess or expired, we’ll find a market for your waste product and turn it into cash. Get in touch to learn more.
