PET Food Processing - September 2019 - 12

TRENDS

ANOTHER
SATISFIED
CUSTOMER.

inspection should rarely detect deficiencies," he explains.
For incoming and outgoing trailer inspections, Dobesh
says trailers need to be completely cleaned out, including
piles of pallet debris in the corners from previous shipments, which is not always done. "This ensures there are no
pests or other issues using those piles as a harborage, which
could then infest a new shipment," she says.
From a sanitation standpoint, environmental programs
and controls are often overlooked, according to Wood. "They
are challenging to implement and continually enforce in
a busy production facility," he says. "But product microbial
contamination can often be traced back to the environment."

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One of the largest challenges food processors have in adhering to regulations is getting the appropriate "buy-in" from
all departments. Much of what is considered food safety
compliance is performed by team members from production and engineering. If not everyone in the facility is on
board with following protocol, audit failure is inevitable.
In areas with a tight labor market, the biggest issues
Nexcor sees are gaps in food safety training. "Another issue is defining protocols that make sense," Burgh says. "Not
only must food safety happen, it must also be documented
by all the departments involved. All departments must be
able to perform their share of food safety without it being
a hindrance to what they perceive their primary focus is,
which could be production, maintenance, etc."
Treblik says a top challenge is engaging people, particularly new employees, on the expectations, and offers a threepart approach: education, training, and a process designed
for success. "Education means demonstrating why a specific
process or requirement is important - winning our team's
hearts and minds so they're fully invested in safety," he says.
"Training is the practical part of this: ensuring people know
how to take the safe action. Designing processes for success
means we must make compliance not only a requirement but
a natural behavior for our employees. They shouldn't have to
make any difficult decisions about whether to comply."
Other challenges include working with regulators on
how to interpret the regulations and ensuring facilities
that pre-date the regulations comply with the new expectations. This means maintaining rigorous internal controls,
such as strict change control processes. "As new technology
becomes available, as we, as an industry, grow our collective knowledge, and as inspectors increase their interactions
on the regulations, the interpretation of what compliance
looks like can evolve," Treblik says. "We must stay abreast of
these changes."

Initiating change

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PET Food Processing - September 2019

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