Page 36 - FoodFocusThailand No.180 March 2021

SPECIAL FOCUS

Due Diligence

for Food Safety

Compliance

Nowadays, food manufacturers have a full
accountability to improve their working
process, so that every step production is
safe and free from contamination to deliver
the safest food to consumers.

The HACCP is a primary system for food manufacturers to manage know the source of problem. Furthermore, the access to handle defects
their production processes, while The Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) shall be authorized with password code, for instance, opening a rejection
is the governing agency of certified bodies to issue certification or bin to conduct a proper procedure.
accreditation to the organizations which recognized GFSI standards Five main sensors in the Due Diligence system are installed as follows:
such as BRCGS (Brand Reputation Compliance Global Standards), IFS 1. Reject Confirmation Unit (RCU) is installed at the entry of the
(The International Food Standard), FSSC 22000, SQF 2000. Those are rejection bin to validate the defect removal from the belt to the rejection
the prominent global standards in these days. bin.
These standard systems elevate a higher product quality and also 2. Air Pressure Sensor is installed at pneumatic sorting device to
help to reduce the risk of lawsuit damage since there are documentary validate its air pressure. If the air pressure drops, the rejection device may
proven that the manufacturer has regularly performed the quality checks be at risk for malfunction. Then, the metal detector will show an alert on
in their production process. the display screen immediately.
Can you Ensure the Reliability of In-house Inspection? 3. Bin Full Sensor is installed at the top of the rejection bin to check
whether the bin is full. If the rejection bin is full, the defect may overflow
Duty of Care By law, we all have a duty to take caution, not do and return to the conveyor.
anything that may cause damage or harm to others. The ‘Standard of 4. Electronic Bin Lock by far the most overlooked, is installed to secure
Care’ is the level of caution, care, prudence, and protection according the rejection bin. After the defects were screened out, only authorized
to the right and the duty of each individual. shall have an access to those defects to decide what to do next. The
In the food industry, the code for caution is set by the various
standards in which the manufacturer requested for certifications. Failure rejection bin lock sensor can be operated by entering code at the metal
detector screen from the authorized personal. In addition, the system will
to comply with the standards can be a negligence which may result in alert if the rejection bin is not closed within a specific time.
a damage claim by affected parties.
What is ‘Fail Safe’ Due Diligence? Due Diligence is the
verification analysis and risk prevention from all aspects. This includes
a systematic review and audit process to ensure that there is no error
in the contamination inspection.
We can apply a due diligence system to prove and demonstrate the
reliability of a production process whether it is properly handled with a
complete quality validation to avoid any contamination issue.
Metal Detector with Due Diligence System Metal detectors
are most widely used in food and beverage processing plants which รูปที่ 3 การเปิดถังคัดแยกโดยป้อนคำาสั่งที่หน้าจอเครื่องตรวจจับโลหะ
highly recognized as a quality standard technology. However, it is possible Figure 3 Opening the rejection bin by entering a code at the metal detector screen
that metal can perhaps expose in the products if there is no sufficient
management system to take action after metal is detected. 5. Reject Check Sensor (RCS) is installed at the exit of the conveyor
Metal detectors are equipped with an automatic rejection unit with to final-check the reject system operation by adding one more step from
a storage bin. It can help to solve the problem when a scrap metal is Reject Confirmation Unit. There is a possibility that a defect passes through
slipped out from a production line. Reject Confirmation Unit, but unfortunately returns back to the line.
To ensure all contaminated products completely removed from the By detecting with this Reject Check Sensor, the system will halt with the
production line, the Due Diligence system can be installed to check on alarm notified.
the metal detection system to prevent any errors and to ensure the In addition to the GFSI-certified for food compliance, Global retailers
highest level of compliance regarding to the standards required. like Marks & Spencer, Tesco, or Woolworths have all recognized and
Different types of sensors are installed to check metal detectors and trusted the due diligence function as part of the COP (Code Of Practice)
air supply for rejection, as well as, to prevent an improper handling for their OEMs to meet the requirements.
practice by an operator at the production line. Due Diligence system is designed to inspect contaminants. By working
A perfect Due Diligence system should integrate the metal detector to prevent problems, the risk of contaminated products slipped to
systematically. For example, an error when a defect is not pushed into consumers will be reduced. This concept can be applied to other product
the rejection bin shall be notified in the screen monitor to let the operator quality inspection, such as X-ray inspection machine, checkweigher, etc.
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