SafetyChain Blog

The advantages of becoming certified in a Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) scheme span far and wide for food and beverage companies. Not only can maintaining GFSI compliance boost your company’s performance, but the initiative also benefits consumers and the food system as a whole. Here are just a few of the most noteworthy ways in which your company can benefit from GFSI certification.

In recent decades, terrorism has taken on a new identity. Since the September 11 attacks in 2001, terrorists have found new ways to threaten and harm the U.S. population. A September 2017 Newsweek article stated that ISIS supporters called for the poisoning of food in grocery stores across the U.S. and Europe. While the claim was not substantiated, it cannot be ignored. The food and beverage industry must do its part in taking a proactive role against threats and maintaining food safety throughout the nation.

Optimizing your food safety and quality management (FSQM) system has a number of benefits. While it can help your facility maintain regulatory compliance and meet customer requirements on an ongoing basis, the benefits of enhancing your FSQM system extend far beyond simply performing well in audits. It can help you reduce waste, increase productivity, and ultimately, drive better bottom-line results.

While Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) certification has far-reaching benefits for food manufacturers and processors, aligning your entire food safety management program with rigorous GFSI compliance standards can be challenging. Whether you’re considering certification for your facility or you’re simply looking to brush up on some best practices, here are the five most noteworthy challenges of GFSI compliance to consider.

For food and beverage companies, managing compliance is an integral component of everyday operations. In addition to complying with regulatory, audit, and customer requirements, organizations must also protect themselves from product recalls and foodborne illness outbreaks. The ability to ensure effective outcomes in these areas relies heavily on a strong food safety and quality management (FSQM) system.

To move beyond basic compliance, food and beverage companies must mitigate risks in three major areas: product recalls, regulatory non-compliance, and pathogen contamination/food-borne illnesses. The most effective strategy for doing so is adopting an enterprise risk management process. This allows companies to take a proactive look at food safety management.

Blog post courtesy of Eric Hansen, Director of Technical Solutions, SafetyChain Software.

The Food and Drug Administration does not currently recognize cannabis as legal, so no federal standard exists for regulation of cannabis edibles. And yet, it is safe to assume that if you are running a cannabis edibles operation, your business will be subject to regulation sooner rather than later.

For our September 2018 session, Christopher Snabes, MS, CFS, Senior Food Safety Director with The Acheson Group, joined SafetyChain for an update on current FSMA activities and to provide an overview of best practices for Hazard Analysis.

Check out our favorite articles on food quality and safety from September!

Throughout the month, we follow the latest trends and news to bring you insights and updates from thought leaders in the food industry. Here's a roundup of our favorite articles and blog posts from around the web from last month.

GFSI certification helps companies achieve better food safety outcomes, and it can also boost competitiveness and support better overall performance. Yet, effective GFSI management poses certain obstacles for food and beverage companies, such as achieving ongoing compliance and being audit-ready on demand – using only the existing resources they have at their disposal. With automated tools and powerful analytics, food safety technology can help.