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Americans are Worried about Food Safety...and Rightly So!
A Harris Poll completed last month found that 86 percent of respondents were either seriously concerned (28 percent) or somewhat concerned (58 percent) about food safety and a majority of 73 percent said there should be more government oversight of food production.
 And Americans have cause for concern. Recalls so far just this month include rice products, dark chocolate almonds, tomatoes, dog and cat food, dried lilies, beef jerky, chicken noodle soup, boneless ham prosciutto, and sweeten ginger candy...not to mention the nearly 9 million pounds of beef from diseased animals distributed without adequate inspection.
The causes of recalls are varied. They include everything from misbranding, using the wrong HACCP plan, processing deviations, inadequate or improper inspections, contamination, undeclared allergens, insanitary conditions, and so on.
The sad truth is that most recalls can be prevented with up-to-date food safety plans (including supply chain management) that are enforced and backed by ongoing employee training. Instead, these companies will now spend a ton of money dealing with the cost, management, legal and market consequences of a product recall, all of which fall directly to the bottom line. The irony is that a much smaller investment in ongoing food safety program maintenance and training could have probably prevented the recall from ever happening in the first place!
Driven by the Food Safety Modernization Act and enforced by the FDA, the demand for food safety programs has never been higher. Moreover, supply chain vendors must now comply with major retailer requirements to become certified to a worldwide food safety standard, typically one benchmarked by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI).
PSV Food Safety Consultants offers affordable consulting to assist North American companies in achieving GFSI acceptable certifications. And to keep you certified, as well as avoiding expensive recalls, we offer our comprehensive Gold Star Maintenance Program that is customized to satisfy your unique needs. Please contact us for a FREE consultation to learn how we can help your organization.
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