Abstract
The food safety landscape continues to evolve across time, geography, and supply chains. This research seeks to analyze the determinants of market‐based food safety management systems (FSMSs) implementation in the Middle Eastern context. Primary data were collected from food safety managers representing 94 processors across Lebanon. We found food processors having implemented ISO 22000 (50%), HACCP (40%), and ISO 9001 (25.5%); however, none of the processors implemented industry‐based FSMSs. Although ISO 22000 was mostly implemented by large (85%) and medium (67%) processors, the uptake of ISO 22000 by small processors has picked up (29%). Economic incentives (market orientation) and firm‐specific factors (organizational readiness, product/process characteristics, company size, and ownership structure) are the key drivers for the increased implementation of market‐based FSMSs. Predominantly export‐oriented processors had the odds of implementing ISO 22000 5.5 times more than the domestically oriented processors. Firms with a quality assurance (QA) unit had 15 times higher chance of implementing ISO 22000 than otherwise. Finally, processors engaged in fresh produce had 4.9 times higher chance of implementing ISO 22000 than those engaged in dry goods. The study establishes that the dominance of public‐based FSMSs in the governance of food safety is a strategic choice (economic incentives) more than statutory requirements.
Highlights
All around the world, food safety has become a public health concern and a major development challenge (Liu, 2014; Nychas, Panagou, & Mohareb, 2016)
We argue that the harmonization of food safety systems across geographies and supply chains can enhance the implementation of international food safety management systems (FSMSs) by reducing the certification and auditing costs
The results showed FSMSs (HACCP and International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 22000) and the quality management system (ISO 9001) as the dominant public-based systems implemented by the surveyed processors
Summary
Food safety has become a public health concern and a major development challenge (Liu, 2014; Nychas, Panagou, & Mohareb, 2016). High profile food scares related to microbiological (e.g., Salmonella, E. coli), contaminant (e.g., dioxins), and animal disease (e.g., BSE) have raised a wide range of food safety legislative demands (Kendall et al, 2018). This parallels the increased complexity and globalization of food supply chains (Kotsanopoulos & Arvanitoyannis, 2017). A plethora of market-based (nonregulatory) schemes has emerged in the last two decades. They include public-based FSMSs, such as International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 9001, Hazard Analysis Critical Control
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