As any company in the meat and seafood industry knows, regulatory changes are a constant factor to deal with. Researchers and food safety officials regularly mandate new quality assurance rules at every step of the supply chain in order to prevent the spread of food-borne illnesses.
While this is great news for the end consumer, it ultimately means businesses must adhere to stringent rules and requirements.
At the heart of adherence is an organization’s ability to develop, implement, and maintain an appropriate quality assurance program that takes every step of the supply chain into account. If your company isn’t currently invested in such a program, then it’s time to reconsider the direction you’re heading.
Here are 4 Things to Consider:
1. High Risk Nature of Meat and Seafood
The reality of the situation is that more care must be taken with fish and poultry. From 1998-2008, 3,264 foodborne illness outbreaks in the United States were associated with fish and poultry.
From 2009-2010, the CDC reports that there were 46 hospitalizations from E. coli in beef – three of which resulted in deaths – and two deaths related to Salmonella in pork. Over this same time period, there were recalls tied to 43 different outbreaks in the United States, with ground beef and oysters making up some of the recalled food items.
2. Proper Sanitization is Key
There are essentially three major types of contaminates that make meat and seafood unsafe: biological, chemical, and physical.
Any business in the meat and seafood industry is aware of sanitation best practices. The key is developing stringent rules that employees actually follow. This means educating them on the importance of proper sanitization and what they can do to promote a cleaner and safer work environment.
3. Objective and Subjective Receiving
When receiving a shipment of fresh seafood or meat, it’s important that you inspect each and every container. This is especially true when it comes to seafood. Not only should you empower your receiving department with the proper tools, but you should also allow them to subjectively check for quality based on odor, physical appearance, resilience, eyes, scales, and gills.
Beyond these subjective test measures, it’s also smart to check core temperatures. For example, fish that’s held at 50 degrees F will actually spoil five times faster than fish held at 32 degrees F. Always make sure shipments meet the specified product delivery temperature range.
4. Proper Equipment and Procedures
Every food business depends heavily on equipment. Beyond sanitization of equipment, it’s imperative that you’re constantly monitoring individual units to ensure they’re operating efficiently and safely. This includes refrigerators and other appliances that could negatively impact quality if mechanical failure were to take place.
Speaking of mechanical failure, power outages and other uncontrollable issues can result in food contamination and spoilage. This can be extremely costly, and it’s generally suggested that you carry at least $250,000 in spoilage coverage to offset this risk.
The Role of ERP in Quality Assurance
When it comes to mandates and regulations from various programs and groups, it’s not unusual for companies to struggle with developing and maintaining a quality audit process. There are dozens of independent variables to consider and it can be extremely complicated. While some companies choose a manual paper-based method, this is a foolish solution to a complex pain point.
One of the worst things a company can do is attempt to handle quality assurance without the assistance of a robust ERP platform. Over the past few years, ERP systems have evolved into powerful solutions for quality control in all industries, but especially for those dealing with meat and seafood.
The right ERP system streamlines compliance and automates the many difficult tasks associated with adhering to stringent quality standards. From tracking processes and recording data to handling recalls and simplifying audits, an ERP system makes things so much easier.
If you were interested in this post you may also like to read our case study about Roger Woods Foods, a family-owned and operated meat processor operating in Savannah, who uses JustFood.
Ready for a specialized food ERP? Learn more about Aptean Food & Beverage ERP JustFood Edition — a solution purpose-built to solve your challenges and propel your food business and digital transformation to the next level.
