Facing up to food scares [food processing industry - legislation

Abstract

The need to ensure the safety of the domestic and global food supply has resulted in a rise in both government regulation and brand protection demands from customers. New regulations have come into force that make 'one-up, one-back' traceability mandatory in the UK for all food and drink manufacturers - making automated traceability systems a virtual necessity. The 'one-up, one-back' process involves being able to identify food ingredients at different stages. Traceability is becoming an essential element of modern manufacturing methodologies, and the optimum solution is to make full use of the four cornerstones: individual part identification, direct part marking, code verification, and a searchable database. An integral part of the new food and drink legislation is speed of response - four hours mandated for response time. So, for many food processors, their current challenge is to identify an automated approach to traceability that is both cost-effective and a good fit for their current business operations.