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This year's almonds smallest in 40 years Published Date : 2013-12-23 10:02:34

This year’s almond crop has produced the smallest almonds in 40 years, meaning potential problems for food manufacturers that rely on a particular size of whole or sliced almond, according to Blue Diamond Growers.

For slices, the problem is technical rather than purely aesthetic, considering that smaller almonds tend to be more difficult to slice.

California produces about 80% of the worlds almond supply so any change in quality there affects the whole supply chain.

As a result food businesses may need to look carefully at their raw material specifications and finished product specifications to create a risk mitigation plan.

Bearing in mind the risk that approved suppliers may struggle to deliver sufficient volume against pre-agreed specifications it could make sense to start supplier risk assessment and supplier approval of alternative suppliers as soon as possible to get in front of this issue.

Supplier monitoring and QA checks on intake should be stepped up.

If there is any risk of not being able to meet customer specifications get out there now and start talking to customers to either modify the food specs or get a derogation.

GFSI outlines food safety auditor competencies Published Date : 2013-12-19 11:55:34

The GFSI has released the first edition of it’s Food Safety Auditor Competencies.

It comes after three years of work by the GFSI Auditor Competence Working Group, tasked by the GFSI Board to define generic food safety auditor competencies underpinning GFSI benchmarked schemes, and the mechanisms they can be assessed and verified.

The group involved Cargill, ConAgra, General Mills, Kraft Foods, PepsiCo, Silliker and the Coca Cola Company.

The competency framework is a list of agreed generic knowledge and skill components that can be applied across all post farm-gate GFSI benchmarked schemes.

Within supply chain auditing there has always debate auditor competence and the knock on effect on supplier certification schemes. It is good to see the GFSI tackle this, lets see what the outcomes are.

Government planning oral provision of allergen information Published Date : 2013-12-17 11:37:40

At the Anaphylaxis Campaign conference, Sue Hattersley from the FSA announced that the UK is intending to introduce a national measure to enable the oral provision of allergen information for non-prepacked food.

It is believed that this will encourage conversation between the food business and the consumer.

But the food business will need to have systems in place to ensure allergy information is captured and available to staff to give to consumers.

Apparently the legislation should be in place by the end of this year.

My worry with oral provision is how will this be delivered consistently, how often do I sit in restaurants these days and struggle to converse with the waiting staff on less critical issues such as placing my orders and asking for basic information relating to the dish of interest.

What about the complexity of differences on food product specifications for similar items across different regions in a food service operations supply base?

Seed purity standards and allergen thresholds Published Date : 2013-12-15 13:21:21

At a recent Anaphylaxis Campaign conference I listened to an excellent presentation from Rachel Ward of r.ward consultancy limited.

Rachel’s presentation was titled “Perspectives on thresholds: where are we now?”

Whilst I have been an avid follower of the likely emergence of allergen thresholds and  the VITAL allergen system there were a couple of observations which Rachel made which made me sit up an take notice.

Firstly Rachel indicated that likely legislation changes made it possible that if intentionally added that all of the 160 likely allergens need to be labelled on packaging.

Knowing that many food businesses are struggling to manage allergen risk assessment and allergen declarations for the 14 allergens using their existing raw material specifications, extending this to 160 likely allergens would be nigh on impossible.

Secondly Rachel raised the issue of seed purity standards which usually allow up to 2% of other seeds within a certified seed batch. This allied to crop rotation practices within farming which result in cross contamination risks between allergen bearing and non allergen bearing crops raises another set of challenges to manage.

Allergen Management looks to be getting more complex over the coming years.

Only 31% Of India's Milk Complies With Standards Published Date : 2013-12-15 13:10:45

An overwhelming quantity of milk being supplied in the market, both in pouches and in open cans in retail, does not conform to the quality standards under the Food Safety and Standards Act, the central government`s food regulatory authority has told the Supreme Court.

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), in an affidavit filed last week, told the apex court of the 1,791 samples it collected from both urban and rural areas in states across

the country, as many as 1,226 samples or 68.4 percent were found to be non-conforming to its standards.

In an alarming admission, the affidavit also said: “The study also indicated traces of detergent in some cases.”

“Milk with detergent is unsafe for consumption,” the FSSAI said.

Counsel Anurag Tomar, who appeared for the Swami Achyutanand Tirth who had filed the public interest litigation, said that though the FSSAI says that some samples had traces of detergent, a survey report said that in 103 samples, the presence of detergent was as high as 8.4 percent.

The FSSAI acknowledged that water was the most common adulterant.

“Addition of water not only reduces the nutritional value of the milk but if contaminated water is used, it may also pose health risk to the consumers,” the authority told the court.

The sample report said that in cases where powered milk was being used for reconstituting the milk, the same was not being disclosed.

The samples collected by the Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai and the Guwahati regional offices of the FSSAI, were tested at five government laboratories across the country.

The affidavit, filed by FSSAI`s assistant director Kamal Kumar, said that only 31.5 percent (565) samples collected from across the country in 2011 conformed with the statutory standards set under the 2006 act.

Compared to urban areas, the quality of milk available in rural areas was much better as the incidence of non-conforming samples collected in rural areas was 31 percent, or 381 of the samples. Of these 381 non-conforming samples, 16.7 percent or 64 were those sold in packaged form and 83.2 percent or 317 samples were those sold in retail.

In urban areas, 33.3 percent of non-conforming samples were in packed form and the rest were through cans.

The worst scenario was in Uttar Pradesh where 88 percent of the samples collected were non-conforming.

“The deviation observed may be due to addition of water to milk,” the affidavit said, adding that none of the samples failed due to neutralisers and acidity percentage.

Top 10 Risks for Food & Drink Manufacturers

Published Date : 2013-12-12 16:31:54

The AON Food and Drink risk survey identified the Top 10 Risks facing Food and Drink Manufacturers.

1. Commodity prices / cost of raw materials2. Increased competition3. Damage to brand or reputation4. Multi-retailer power5. Cash flow / liquidity risk6. Distribution or supply chain failure7. Food safety management8. Product contamination and recall9. Consumer trends

10. Weather

As far as I can see, 60% (1,3,6,7,8) of these risks could be interpreted to be included within a comprehensive supply chain risk management plan.

They are definitely risks that are being managed by technical teams in food businesses, which brings me to one of my soapbox issues.

Why do so many food businesses not have food safety represented at board level?

What do you think?

Ask yourself - Have you forgotten your brand? Published Date : 2013-12-10 16:01:23

A business’s brand is its most important asset but only a third of chairmen and chief executives in the FTSE 100 mention it in their opening statements of their annual reports, research by BrandCap, the new consultancy, has shown.

There is no reason to see why this would not be the case in the food industry, in my experience.

Yet food businesses have a unique set of challenges not faced by other companies, namely the variability and complexity of food supply chains stretching back to farms allied to the emotional connection consumers have with their food and the trust that they place on food brands to get things right.

But the food supply chain is complex and no matter how strong a supplier approval and supplier risk assessment system a food business has in place, it is still reliant on supply chain compliance with agreed food specifications. This can be complemented with rigorous QA checks on intake and supplier monitoring.

But it not feasible to test everything and there is a risk that non-conforming product will slip through the net.

Risk cannot be completely removed.

About 10% of boards discuss branding at every meeting, the same proportion never discuss it and everyone else is somewhere in the middle, according to Brandcaps report. The report goes on to state that their understanding is not always perfect. For instance, some boards conflate branding with reputation, which in essence is dealing with effect rather than cause. “You do not own your reputation but you do own your brand. Reputation is the outcome of whether or not you are doing the right thing with your brand”

Thought provoking stuff.

Professor Hugh Pennington gives excellent lecture Published Date : 2013-12-08 15:37:35

QADEX were delighted to recently host a table at the excellent SOFHT annual luncheon in the Landmark Hotel, London.

The guest lecture was given by Professor Hugh Pennington, professor Penningtons notable achievements in the realm of food safety was the chairing of the e-coli public enquiry.

As an industry we are coming under increasing media scrutiny and when things go wrong the impact on food businesses can be catastrophic.

Professor Pennington gave a very insightful and thought provoking lecture, with a particular focus on e-coli and the role of super shedders.

Cattle that excrete more Escherichia coli O157 than others are known as super-shedders. Super-shedding has important consequences for the epidemiology of E. coli O157 in cattle — its main reservoir — and for the risk of human infection, particularly owing to environmental exposure. Ultimately, control measures targeted at super-shedders may prove to be highly effective. We currently have only a limited understanding of both the nature and the determinants of super-shedding. However, super-shedding has been observed to be associated with colonization at the terminal rectum and might also occur more often with certain pathogen phage types. More

generally, epidemiological evidence suggests that super-shedding might be important in other bacterial and viral infections.

To summarise, Professor Pennington commended the industry for all the great work done to reduce food safety risk to consumers but highlighted the brand protection risks facing the industry from media coverage which is often sensational and factually incorrect.

Detectamet win SOFHT company of the year Published Date : 2013-12-05 15:23:39

QADEX were delighted to be shortlisted as a finalist for the SOFHT company of the year award, this is until we realised one of the other companies shortlisted was Detectamet.

Since 2003 Detectamet have manufactured and supplier innovative products to reduce food safety risks.

The companies products are designed to help reduce contamination from plastic tools and equipment by being metal detectable and X-ray visible so they do not become lost in the production system, thereby reducing food safety risk and increasing brand protection.

With a reputation for developing new products and producing tailor made items for unique processing needs, Detectamet has also set the industry regulatory standards having worked to achieve international compliance with the requirements for safe contact with food.

Personally having seen some of Detectamet’s products and met the team they are a deserving winner of  the award.

QADEX Christmas Themed website launched Published Date : 2013-12-03 15:16:09

Regular visitors to the QADEX website will notice that we sometimes put seasonal themes on the site.

The work we do around supply chain risk management, food specifications and customer complaints management is something which we take very seriously.

But it is sometimes nice to relax a little and have a smile.

During Christmas 2012 we launched the first seasonal theme on our website as a little bit of fun within the software development team and the result was fun and generated some great positive feedback from users.

This year it is back even bigger and better than last year with some interesting snow effects.

Let us know what you think.

Mmmm...Metcalfe's Published Date : 2013-12-02 08:06:38

At QADEX we have the privilege of working with some amazing food companies!We recently received a very unexpected but delicious hamper of goodies from Metcalfe’s containingsome of their Skinny and ITSU Grocery range.Metcalfe’s Skinny was one of my favorites! This range is on mission to rustle up healthier alternatives tocrisps, cakes and cookies.I have to say with Christmas fast approaching and that little black dress hanging in my wardrobe, Icouldn’t think of a better range to enjoy and still stay healthy!To be able to enjoy quality tasting products for half the calories is amazing and is what I would class as a little piece of heaven!Here’s a few comments from the guys at QADEXJulian“My favorite out of all the products tried today was the ‘ITSU seaweed thins.’ Light nice, salty and reallynicely presented. These may now be a regular in the family snack cupboard :)”Teresa“I had some of the ITSU yogurt coated fruit. Only one word to describe them…. Yummy “Menal“I tried the Sweet Cinnamon Spiced Popcorn, you’d never be able to tell it was half the calories. Thecinnamon really got me in the Christmas spirit”If you would like to find out more about these amazing foods check out the Metcalfes websiteWe would like to say a massive Thank you to Metcalfe’s for their generosity in providing us with these delicious snacks!

Farewell to 2013

Published Date : 2013-12-01 18:18:07

What a year 2013 has been for those involved in supply chain risk management.

I suspect many will be hoping that 2014 is a quieter year.

Media coverage of consumer complaints Published Date : 2013-11-22 13:17:23

I do not have any statistics but my own anecdotal evidence is that we appear to be getting a lot more food complaints making it into the Daily Mail with very graphic photos and videos available.

Over the past week I have noticed the Video of the fly in the mashed potatoes, and the worm in the chicken tikka slice.

And I could continue to list some of the other dramatic customer complaints which get media coverage.

What percentage of these turn out to be genuine and what percentage are fake, I do hope that someone out there is tracking this as my suspicions are that quite a substantial number could be fake.

But if you are the food business that gets caught up in one of these incidents the brand protection damage could be huge.

If we do not find a coherent way of tackling and reporting the fraudulent claims and ensuring that the media coverage catches up and sets the record straight we run the risk of an increasing stream of “sensational stories” which will unnecessarily undermine consumer confidence.

Interestingly if you read the comments posted by some consumers on websites opinion is mixed, maybe there is hope after all.

Olive shortage could create substitution risk Published Date : 2013-11-20 16:46:14

Greece’s crop of Halkidiki olives is being picked now and could be down by as much as 80% on last year due to bad weather.

Some olive suppliers will struggle to meet existing contracts, with the impact starting to be felt over the coming months.

I recommend checking your raw material specifications to see if you are impacted, and don’t forget compound ingredients.

If you are using I would suggest some more detailed QA checks on intake to ensure supplier compliance with spec.

FSA response to horsegate report Published Date : 2013-11-20 12:48:16

I was intrigued by the terms of reference which narrowed the scope of the review to “any recent intelligence on the threat of substitution”

Horizon scanning within the food industry is a long term science / dark art, but this review seems to feel that the “looking back over previous months” is a sufficient time scale. I am not sure I agree.

horsemeat scandal

The report states that many industries and the FSA itself do have systems to identify emerging issues. For example the FSA has in place an ‘Emerging Risks Programme’ and a Food Fraud

team, who use intelligence to inform targeted enforcement action. This incident has demonstrated the need to strengthen this horizon scanning and intelligence analysis, but it is not possible to say that this adulteration would have been detected even with a more substantial programme. It is acknowledged that electronic systems including open information systems and web crawlers can also provide valuable information.

A finding of the report is that an intelligence management system should be developed which includes horizon scanning, intelligence gathering and analytical capability, that is the right people to ask the right questions. The FSA should take the lead in building capability, but a collaborative approach will be essential. This process should be further backed up by targeted sampling programmes, delivered by not just the FSA and local authorities, but also by industry.

But the real gem for me is buried at the bottom of page 17 of 21 pages and it states that “a further point highlighted in this incident is the complexity of the food supply chain and the role of food brokers within this. Further consideration is needed in relation to the classification of food businesses operators.

I may be missing something but how will tweaking the classification of food business operators address the role of brokers in a complex food supply chain.

Time and time again we know that unscrupulous brokers who are trading food products unseen, with inappropriate food safety risk assessment and supplier assurance are a threat and remain a threat to our entire industry.

The full report is available to download from theFood Standards Agency website.

Food and drink failure rates fall. Published Date : 2013-11-18 16:37:05

Research published by Grant Thornton indicates that 12 food and drink companies failed in the third quarter of 2013, compared to 21 failures in the second quarter.

Apparently this is a good result compared to the third quarter of 2012 when 35 food and drink businesses failed.

To me these still seem like a very high number of food and drink businesses to be failing. The impact of these failures on suppliers who end of with bad debts and on customers who end up with service level problems is hard to quantify.

When looking at supply chain risk everyone is going to have to pay closer attention to financial and commercial risks, but as I have found with some recent experience some of the “blue chip” credit rating companies can provide some very dubious information.

More challenges in the world of supply chain risk management!

Taiwan finds banned colouring agent in imported olive oil Published Date : 2013-11-18 12:38:28

FoodNavigator.com have reported the findings by Taiwanese Food & Drug administration of copper chlorophyllin in 12 imported oil products in the last month.

The finger is being pointed at European suppliers. 8 of the products were from Italy and 4 were from Spain.

This comes after government agencies raided the offices of Spanish company Vidoria, a supplier of grape seed oil.

It might be beneficial for UK users of olive oil and grape seed oil to increase supplier monitoring and conduct some additional QA checks on intake.

Retailers encouraged to squeeze supply chains Published Date : 2013-11-15 16:28:59

It was with horror that I read an article in the Grocer, 26th October, by a group of consultants who suggest that retailers could gain the following amounts by squeezing their supply chains harder!, yes harder!

Tesco could gain £6billion

Sainsburys could gain £1 billion

Morrisons could gain £1billion

Booker could gain £271 million

Cranswick could gain £50 million

This is not a zero sums gain, these gains would be at the expense of the suppliers  that are on the receiving end of the squeeze and on suppliers further down the food supply chain.

I don’t think there would be much of a supply chain left at the end of such a squeeze.

Is campylobacter a competitive issue? Published Date : 2013-11-13 16:26:22

I am not sure?

Here at QADEX we work with over 150 food businesses who are actively trying to drive step change improvement in food safety and brand protection.

Seeing food safety as a competitive issue would benefit our customers, and us, but I am still not sure.

Driving improvement takes a long time, and a lot of effort, and sometimes involves opening up and sharing best practice and ideas between businesses who may otherwise be seen as competitors.

Take allergen risk as an example, QADEX customers who use QADEX Vision for supplier risk assessment, supply chain auditing and specification management gain the power of our allergen risk assessment tools which help to identify mis-declared allergens on raw material specifications and also ensure that site based risk assessments are always up to date. But this amazing capability was developed through collaboration across a number of food businesses and our development team. The businesses now benefiting from these tools cannot advertise or market on pack what they are doing to be better.

Consumers want to trust the food that they buy, and when things go wrong the brand protection implications can be large.

But I know from the work I do every week with progressive technical directors and technical managers that treating food safety as a “non-competitive issue” allows them to sit down, have conversations and move things forward. If food safety becomes a competitive issue some companies may become introverted and we are all worse off as an industry.

I am really not sure about the wisdom of the FSA taking this direction.

Walkers use raw material provenance in marketing

Published Date : 2013-11-11 14:01:43

What started out as a blog post about a really impressive way of turning the robustness of Walkers supplier approval procedures and confidence in raw material specification accuracy into a great marketing campaign has turned into a gripe about the ease of scoring an own goal (not that Gary scored any OG’s).

For those of you who are unaware, Walkers Snack Foods are currently running an on pack campaign called Gary’s Great Ingredient Hunt, which encourages consumers to go a a website and enter a code which can be found on pack to take part in the competition.

Extract from Walkers website showing how to access the code

Looks great and I tried to have a go, but I cannot get at the code.

So with dogged determination I check out the instructions in screen to peel back the film which proved impossible to do, for me at least.

After about 5 determined minutes (during lunch break!) I eventually manage to peel the top layer of the laminated crisp packet. I bet when the packaging technologist was agreeing the packaging specifications with the film supplier they never envisaged consumers trying to do what I just did with the packaging.

Suffice to say I have now given up with trying to take part in the competition and am now blogging about  the immense pressure on branded food businesses to deliver on every touch point with consumers. A single point of failure can turn a great customer experience into a customer complaint and more work for the complaint management team.

I have no doubt Walkers have extensive QA checks in place to avoid this type of thing and are and all non-conforming products are being proactively managed.

But they did have a fire recently at Beaumont Leys and are probably under intense service level pressure.

The campaign does feel like a great idea but I hope it does not backfire if a large number of consumers had the same experience. It is a thin line between sublime success and a brand protection nightmare.