March/April 2021 - 20

OPERATIONS
RECALLS
Mitigating recall risk
STAKES ARE TOO HIGH NOT TO PURSUE PREVENTION, READINESS
By Eric Garr
Guest columnist
ANY FOOD RECALL incident is a
crisis situation that requires quick
action to mitigate any longstanding
financial and reputational damage.
Metal detection specialist Fortress
Technology examines the different
factors that can make food operators
more vulnerable to a recall, even with
inspection equipment in place.
Aftershocks of the COVID-19
pandemic is placing global food and
supply chains under even greater
pressure. Although the sector has
stayed largely operational, as eating
and spending habits change and retail
pricing pressures escalate, flexing to this
uncertain landscape and maintaining
robust contingency plans has become
even more critical to survival.
20 MARCH/APR I L 2 021
During these challenging times,
cost-cutting measures could have an
adverse impact on food and drink
safety, resulting in a rise in recalls
cautions the inspection specialist.
The threat of ignoring these risks is
significant. In one study, the U.S. Food &
Drug Administration (FDA) found that
approximately one quarter of all foodrelated
complaints it received over the
course of a year involved the presence
of a visible foreign contaminant. This
same study indicated that nearly 15%
of the complainants had reportedly
suffered an injury or illness, which
they attributed to the foreign material.
As the global food supply chain grows
increasingly complex, the FDA's Food
Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) has
shifted focus from response to prevention
and is driving the adoption of track-andtrace
technologies in all sectors. Despite
stricter regulatory measures to prevent
physical hazards from occurring, recall
incidents increased in the US by ten
percent between 2013 and 2018, a major
contributing factor linking a rise in
physical contaminants, including metal,
glass and plastic.
These findings imply that short-term
thrift with equipment may have an
adverse effect on food safety, putting
a business and brand reputation in
jeopardy. Understanding how to
optimize metal detection systems is
not just good business practice, it also
forms a critical part of the planning for
a recall process.
Protecting reputations
News of a recall spreads fast on
social media, and often leads to
a reduction in sales and a loss of
confidence in brands. In fact, according

March/April 2021

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