packaging is essential to ensure food supply chain safety

Best Practices for Safety in the Food Supply Chain

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Arguably, the food supply chain is the most highly regulated – on a par with the pharma supply chain. One cannot be too careful when handling food for human consumption. And every link in this supply chain is equally important and accountable. Today, we will discuss a few best practices for the food supply chain safety, which we also rely on when working with clients.

1. Knowing the Local and International Regulations

The food supply chain is extremely complex, as it has both short local loops and very long overseas loops. Consumers demand diversity and have a taste for both local foods and elements of international cuisine.

In this context, food producers, processors and distributors must have in-depth knowledge both of local regulations and internationals standards. Some countries (for example Australia, Canada and the USA) have very strict regulations for food imports. Others (especially the EU bloc) enforce tight rules on food safety and quality.

Thus, incorporating these standards in business practices is a basic prerequisite for operating in this industry.

2. Using the Right Type of Packaging

Professional packaging producers like Logistic Packaging know the strict safety standards required for food products. To meet our client’s needs, over the time, we developed a diversified range of returnable plastic packaging for the food industry.

Some of these products are:

These packaging materials meet the key requirements for food packaging:

  • Made of raw materials approved for food contact
  • Easy to sanitize
  • Resistant to low temperatures used in cold storage.

3. Create Contingency Plans

Our logistics and packaging specialists know that, despite implementing all the best practices, something can and will go wrong unexpectedly. Thus, every company involved in the production and handling of food product must have a clear action plan.

The food supply chain safety depends on the speed to remove a contamination, isolate tainted products and mitigate damages. Nothing can be left to chance and no incident downplayed. Even if only the outer package appears damaged by spillage or mechanical shocks, all the affected products must be quickly removed and a full sanitizing procedure initiated for the rest of the items.

4. The Crux of Food Supply Chain Safety: Effective Cold Storage Solutions

The cold chain is essential for the food industry. Most food products must be stored and transported at low temperatures to maintain their freshness and shelf life.

This means that every element in the cold chain must be constantly monitored to ensure 100% uptime. For some food products, like eggs, fresh fish, some dairy products, even a short exposure to high temperatures is enough to make them unfit for consumption.

The cold chain is sometimes complex, especially for processed foods which will spend time in warehouse before being distributed to supermarkets. Thus, temperatures in storage facilities, frigorific vans and store backrooms must be maintained within the safe range for sensitive foods.

5. Maintaining Constant Communication among Stakeholders

Last, but not least the food supply chain safety is ensured if every stakeholder is involved and informed of all the essential rules and regulations. Constant communication is essential if you want to make sure that these rules are consistently applied from farm to fridge.

This is why companies in the food industry should establish strong and long-term relationships with vendors and suppliers.

As packaging partners, the team at Logistic Packaging is always ready to help companies in the food industry find and implement the best returnable packaging products that contribute to a safer supply chain. Send us an email to start discussing with one of our experts!