Food Industry Insights

91. Food Manufacturing Production Planning And Scheduling Best Practices 6/22/2017

    Accurate production planning and scheduling is critical for a company to reduce changeover time between production cycles, minimize wasted materials and run effective manufacturing practices.

92. 9 Essential Purchasing Practices For Food Companies 6/22/2017

    Purchasing is a major area of strategic development for most food companies. So, what are the best purchasing practices for food companies to implement and maintain?

93. Avoiding Recalls Through Physical Hazard Prevention: Are You Doing Enough? 6/13/2017

    Preventing physical hazards in food continues to be challenging, and frequently, the reason for companies and/or regulatory agencies issuing recall notices. A brief review of the recalls viewable online at Recall.gov indicates that the number of recalls for physical hazards per month ranges from zero to eight involving USDA and FDA amenable products. This article will provide steps to help food companies keep physical contaminants out of food, as well detail the latest technologies helping to reduce physical contamination-related recalls.

94. Whole Genome Sequencing Will Make Food Safer... Just Not Immediately 5/19/2017

    For years, there has been a buzz about how genome sequencing is revolutionizing food safety. It is definitely an incredible tool giving an immediate understanding of the genetic composition of microbial pathogens, including bacteria and viruses. However, there are still gaps needing filled regarding how pathogens produce disease and survive in foods. Genome sequencing brings us more tools to further characterize pathogens, but do not expect any other parts of food safety to be forgotten soon because of WGS.

95. 9 Ways Technology Aids FSMS Implementation And Continuous Improvement 5/18/2017

    There are many aspects of resource allocation to consider when developing a food safety management system (FSMS) for a business and there are efficiencies to be gained in almost every area of an FSMS. Technology and software can provide your team with the tools to monitor production targets and deviations in real-time and more efficiently than visual inspection.

96. Trump And Food Safety: How The Industry Is Responding To Executive Orders 4/24/2017

    Back in January, Food Online’s editor, Sam Lewis, penned a column covering a few predictions for the food industry in 2017. One of these predictions was the impact President Trump would have on the FDA, FSMA, and other food safety policies and legislation. In this column, I will illustrate the influence the President’s Executive Orders have had on the industry over the last several months, as well as how the industry is responding.

97. Recall Communications — How To Interact Effectively With The FDA 4/21/2017

    Unfortunately, food recalls aren’t a matter of “if one happens,” they are a matter of “when one happens.” And when one happens to your company, will you be able to quickly and effectively communicate it with the FDA? This article will illustrate the recall process and offer suggestions to help you get through it.

98. Building & Maintaining A Strong Food Product Portfolio 4/20/2017

    When it comes to developing a new food product, there are two main categories: new-to-market concepts and new flavors of existing products. Of the two, new flavors often require less legwork to make the sale, but the innovative products (if done properly) may have the larger return on investment. Both categories of products are risky though, in their own ways. This column will weigh each approach and offer insights to help you bring new products to your portfolio.

99. Practical Tools For Getting Ahead Of Food Fraud 4/6/2017

    Food fraud, or Economically Motivated Adulteration (EMA), costs the food industry billions of dollars annually. Fraudsters intentionally misrepresent the true identity of food ingredients, artificially enhancing them with illegal dyes, concealing the use of undeclared banned biocides, or palming off counterfeits while evading detection. But, you can fight food fraud with powerful proactive tools that can help you anticipate and reduce your company’s vulnerability to EMA.

100. Rapid Pathogen Detection Methods — What To Consider 3/23/2017

     Rapid methods of pathogen testing have been gaining acceptance in the food industry. Recent advances in technology result in faster detection and identification of pathogens, more convenient, more sensitive, more reproducible, and more specific than conventional methods. This article will detail several rapid pathogen detection methods, their benefits, and offer guidance to which ones your company should choose.