Running a food business has its hassles, even when you have strict food safety efforts. Recalls are common in this industry. And, the best way to prevent frequent recalls is to have an effective food traceability system.
With a traceability system, you can see how the food materials flow within the food industry. This wide range of information is crucial when it comes to analyzing the efficiencies of the food production process and eliminating unsafe food from the market.
Here’s why that is important.
4 Benefits of Food Traceability
Traceability for the food industry is not just for companies to ensure compliance; it also ensures safe consumption and health of the consumers:
1. Food Safety
One of the major advantages of traceability is helping businesses regulate safe food. In case of food safety issues, business owners can have immediate access to information about the products and identify the hazards that led to the issue.
With such information at hand, food regulators can promptly update guidelines on how to control the problem, protecting public health.
2. Transparency
Easily track the movement of the ingredients and products. See how they move across all stages with a traceability system. This means you can also see where the ingredients are sourced. Customers can analyze how safe the food products are themselves. Not just that; it also ensures transparency, increasing customer trust.
3. Regulatory Compliance
Implementing a traceability system is a mandatory food safety standard in countries like the UK, the US, and Australia. Such a system enables food businesses to document essential information needed for handling complaints and managing food recalls.
In the event of an investigation or a food safety audit, government agencies may request this information to conduct a root cause analysis.
4. Reduced Cost
When there is an issue of contamination, it affects the time and speed of your response. This in turn affects the costs of the situation. This means you have to do recalls and rechecks and even remake the batches, costing significant amounts of money.
Accessing the information right away can lead to faster removal of the products or batches that are contaminated. This can significantly reduce the effects of the problem and save potential costs during an actual recall.
With that, let’s see five strategies for food traceability in India that ensure compliance and customer trust.
13 Strategies for Food Product Traceability Procedure
In case of a mishap or contamination, traceability ensures swift corrective steps that allow for recall. This is how it does so:
1. Efficient Tracking by Traceability System
The traceability system assists in isolating and preventing contaminated items from reaching the last mile in case of a potential safety issue. They focus on the products that have been affected by the safety issue. This helps to minimize business disruption that could potentially hamper the public’s health.
Being able to trace items is crucial for food businesses, retailers, and importers. Implementing food traceability is important not only for preventative measures but also gives you a clear picture of the product’s movement.
2. Find the Affected Product or Item
The traceability system not only identifies any mishaps with the food products. With advanced analytics, it can also pinpoint the exact item at the exact stage of the supply chain that is contaminated.
There are special systems for that. You will be able to check the exact reason that caused the contamination. It could be:
- A problem with the supplier
- The malfunctioning device, or
- Improper handling by employees during manufacturing procedure
Food traceability systems aim to protect the general public’s health. They help produce to keep the breakout of food-borne illnesses in control. You can potentially prevent harming public health and also facing the financial repercussions of the products reaching the markets.
3. Take Preventative Measures
You can change any high-risk process in advance to avoid problems with safety measures. For this, you must ensure that all employees have adequate knowledge of hygiene and maintenance and also oversee the proper use and maintenance of raw materials.
Using food traceability software, this is what you can do in real-time:
- Let’s say you need to find a batch due to an unexpected circumstance. Track all the batches using batch numbers and food traceability systems.
- Once you find the contaminated items, take them out of circulation.
- Traceability allows you to analyze your manufacturing processes and identify exactly where issues may be occurring within your production line.
But it does not always have to be due to extremely negative situations. It can be as simple as helping you to locate the bottlenecks.
4. Value Stream Mapping
Value stream mapping is enhanced by traceability, as it monitors the flow of goods throughout the production process. Detailed product genealogy data provide manufacturers with greater supply chain visibility, offering a clearer and more accurate view of their operations’ value stream.
5. Regulatory Compliance
Since the governments have laws to safeguard the consumers, therefore they might need you to register your firm. That is why food traceability software can help you to comply with the regulations. Not just that; you may also need to provide the following information:
- Timeline of migrating the product
- Procedures that the product went through
- Future destination of your items
With these strategies, you can ensure top-to-bottom traceability in food industry. These checks ensure that the food reaching your consumers is safe and free from any contamination or chemicals.
6. Verify Point of Origin
This is a significant selling point for most retailers and brands. Therefore, it is important to be able to trace it with accuracy. It ensures customers’ confidence and trust while safeguarding the company’s reputation.
7. Tackling Food Fraud
Traceability is the best option for you to choose when tackling food fraud. It gives you clear evidence of product safety and quality. Not just that, it also identifies potential risks or weak points in the supply chain.
8. Tracing Sources of Foodborne Ailments
If there is an outbreak of food poisoning or another food-related illness, with a traceability system for food manufacturing, you can help pinpoint the exact time and place where the contamination occurred and spread.
9. Implement Product Recalls
Implementing product recalls involves promptly identifying defective products, notifying customers, coordinating returns, ensuring safety compliance, and maintaining brand trust.
10. Consistent Quality
Even if your suppliers have a strong quality track record, disruptions in their supply chain could impact your business. Leverage traceability data to maintain consistent quality and build consumer trust.
11. Enhancing Sustainability
Understanding your supply chain’s environmental and ethical practices is crucial. Traceability ensures ingredients are sustainably and ethically sourced, reducing risks associated with greenwashing.
12. Supplier Information
This includes your supply chain partners or the place from where you source your raw materials that are used to produce the food products. You must present any relevant documents proving the safety and quality control of the raw materials. As part of your supplier management, you must collect information about the whole process from procurement and other information about supplier ingredients.
Lastly, there is another food authenticity and traceability strategy to keep in mind.
13. Manufacturer Information
This information pertains to your business, including the name, address, and contact details of the food processor, which must be readily available to customers and food safety agencies upon request.
FAQs: Food Traceability: Key Benefits and Strategies for Success
How does traceability differ from recall?
Traceability tracks a product’s journey through the supply chain, while recall removes unsafe or defective products from circulation to protect consumer health.
What technologies are used to trace food?
Barcodes, RFID tags, blockchain systems, GPS, sensors, and digital platforms can document and share data across supply chain participants in real time.
What is the ISO standard for food traceability?
This refers to ISO 22005, which outlines principles and requirements for the design and implementation of traceability systems within the food chain.
Do I have to trace food production by law?
Many countries have regulations mandating food traceability to ensure public safety. Compliance requirements vary, but most focus on tracking food from production to point of sale.
Conclusion
Food traceability is vital for ensuring safety, transparency, and regulatory compliance within the food industry. With robust traceability systems, businesses can prevent contamination, reduce costs, and enhance consumer trust.
To stay ahead of industry demands and meet compliance standards, explore Qodenext’s advanced traceability solutions. Safeguard your business and ensure food safety today!
