Steps to Ameliorate Food Quality Control & Assurance

Food contamination outbreaks and recalls appear to be in the news each week. Quality control is indispensable in any consumer-facing industry, and it is imperative in sectors that create consumables. The food industry needs to improve quality control to reduce contamination and prevent people from getting sick while enjoying their favorite food. Check out how!

• Stricter testing

Individual food production companies have to establish their testing schedules. Substantial modifications won't make an impression until the entire industry adopts higher standards. Due to E-coli contamination, more than 200 people had fallen sick after eating romaine lettuce in their salads or other dishes.

• Quality assurance Vs quality control

Making sure that food supply is safe is about quality assurance and not only about quality control. Consumers want to be sure that the food they are purchasing is safe to consume. Quality control helps in detecting defects and prevents a problem product from infiltrating the market. Quality assurance, on the other hand, sets the focus on limiting the deficiency from occurring in the first place.

• Supply chain transparency

Supply chain transparency is becoming quintessential as food companies try to make a move toward a more sustainable industry. Many of the food products are ordered, from overseas, and without transparency, it becomes impossible to ensure the foods are meeting the same standards for quality and safety.

• Implementing IoT sensors

Even the best preparations sometimes cannot prevent a bacterial agent like E. coli or listeria from making its way into your supply chain. Detecting the problem should be done before the affected product makes it onto grocery store shelves. Wireless sensors can check for perishable foods for temperature variations while stored in a refrigerated warehouse. It can detect the presence of dangerous bacteria, alerting the quality control team.

• Consumer safety remains vital

Millions of people rely on quality control for safe and healthy meals. Taking steps to enhance quality control in your facility could help avert from becoming the next company in the news announcing an FDA-mandated recall.

The food industry is a global collective of diverse businesses that supplies most of the food consumed by the world's population. Hence, food quality becomes a critical aspect of the industry.