I Have a positive! And What? Optimization of Decision-Making Process - From EDQC 2024
This presentation "Transitioning to Proactive Food Safety and Quality Systems" explored the shift from reactive to proactive approaches in food safety and quality management, emphasizing the importance of investing in these systems for long-term business success.
Key Points Addressed:
Current Status and Challenges:
- Existing gaps in dairy food safety and quality practices were highlighted, along with the complexities of addressing them effectively.
Validation and Verification:
- The critical roles of validation (ensuring systems work as intended) and verification (confirming their ongoing effectiveness) were discussed.
- A case study illustrated the validation of Sanitation Standard Operating Procedures (SSOPs) for new equipment.
Opportunities Beyond Validation and Verification:
- Moving beyond “seek and destroy” to preventative measures like sanitation validation and verification to stop issues before they occur.
Enterprise Risk Management:
- Recognizing food safety and quality as integral to managing overall business risks.
This presentation emphasized that proactive food safety systems, supported by modern tools and scientific approaches, are not just preventive but are strategic investments in operational resilience and brand trust.
What to remember?
- Assess your maturity with regard to proactive food safety and quality systems
- Identify high impact opportunities for proactive food safety and quality approaches. For example, cleaning and sanitation – move from “seek and destroy” or similar to validation and verification-based systems
- Review your testing methods and approaches to identify “easy wins”, such as tests that have not been used to drive actions and move towards risk-based sampling.
- Identify “east wins” in data collection and data analytics.
- Develop a strategy for an enterprise risk management (ERM) approach to food safety and quality.
