It’s hard to know exactly what you’re getting when it comes to oil. Oils are produced in lots of different ways — some are expelled using solvents like hexane, some are expeller pressed with a mechanical press that physically squeezes the oil out.

How an oil is produced isn’t always “clearly marked” either. Sometimes the descriptors are in the title, sometimes they’re in abbreviated form (so you’ve got to know the lingo), and sometimes they’re only in the description on the spec sheet. We’ve even found that some vendors are not so adept at quality control, so sometimes you will find no mention of how the oil is made on any documents — and it will be in your hands to make sure you ask the right questions and get the proper documentation.

This last year the FDA officially updated the nutrition fact label requirements for all retail products. This means that if you manufacture a food product, your design and quality assurance teams will have to update the information that you include in the nutrition facts on the back of your product package.

“RBD” is a term that you will hear commonly used when people are talking about oils of many different types. But what does it mean?

RBD is an acronym, which stands for Refined, Bleached and Deodorized. This acronym describes how the oil is processed, and whether it is a refined or unrefined product. It is used to describe a myriad of oils from canola to soy to olive to sunflower to grapeseed and more. However, the refining process is probably very different than you may be picturing, so I’ll tell you a little bit more about it.

This article was originally published by our friends at Alchemy Systems on their blog, The Feed, and was written by Lone Jespersen.  

Did you know that 46% fewer mistakes are made in companies that have a strong culture of quality*? One of the ways that leaders tap this potential is through their focus on building employee trust. The biggest impact on culture strength is employee trust, for example, on average as many as 63% of employees trust their leaders**, however, up to 83% of employees trust their leaders when it is earned through credible and trustworthy recognition of employee performance. So, as leaders, how do we drive fewer mistakes in food safety through employee trust? I suggest three simple reminders that you can apply today.

This article was originally published by our friends at Alchemy Systems  on their blog, The Feed.

The smoke points of oils are important. These temperatures indicate at what temperature a particular type of oil will begin to smoke at, and they are key for allowing manufacturers to choose the right oils for their production process.

But depending on who you ask, you may get different smoke point temperatures from different suppliers, even when they are supplying the same type of oil.

Many of us have either a family member or friends that suffer from a food allergy. 

Listening to their stories of how disciplined they must be on a daily basis in order to avoid injury is absolutely amazing.  The things that I take for granted, such as walking into a convenience store to pick out a quick snack for my son aren’t so simple and quick if you have a loved one that suffers from a food allergy. 

Everyone working in the food industry from the plant manager to the temporary employee truly needs to have the same level of discipline each and every day because we are responsible for the well-being of our consumers in preventing undeclared allergens.

Approved Supplier Systems To Avoid Allergens

Approved supplier systems often get either overlooked or viewed as a system just to collect documentation. 

The USDA Organic and the Non-GMO Project Verification are two distinctly different quality seals, though they both address somewhat related quality control concerns.

If you are a food manufacturer serving the natural food industry and you’re not already doing organics, you’ve probably wondered the following:

What would it take for us to get organic certified? And would it really be worth it?

I recently sat down with our Quality Control Manager and our Warehouse Manager to ask just these questions. I wanted to find out, exactly what it takes to get USDA Organic Certified. I asked questions like:

• What is the process to become organic certified?
• How challenging is it?
• What can the warehouse expect?
• What can purchasing expect?
• How long is it going to take us?

These answers, along with an analysis of your target market, will help you answer the big question: is it worth it for your business?

The Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) is the most sweeping reform of food safety laws in over seven decades. Almost four years after it was signed into law, the final rules governing preventive control for human and animal foods were finally published this September. Now, most FDA regulated companies must prepare for compliance by September 2016.

Compliance dates for the new requirements are defined and more flexible to assist industry compliance while still advancing FDA’s food safety goals. Even with that flexibility, it is important for companies to fully understand five key points regarding the final rule:

• Food Safety Plan v HACCP Plan
• Risk Based Preventative Controls
• Qualified Individual & Auditor
• Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP's)
• Supply Chain Program

Ever heard of winterized olive oil? It’s not commonly discussed, but it’s a good topic to bring up since we’re in the midst of winter.

Winterized olive oil is any grade of olive oil that has had the waxes removed so that it doesn’t solidify in the cold weather (or in the refrigerator). This process is most commonly done on oils that will be used in dressings — it helps an oil-based dressing stay liquid in the fridge.

There’s a few discussions that are at play here. First, what is winterizing? And why would any olive oil need to be winterized in the first place? Lastly, if you’re looking for a winterized olive oil, we can give you some general guidelines and try to point you in the right direction. 

Did you know that if olive oil gets cold, it turns into a butter-like consistency? This isn’t a big deal if you’re cooking at home — but if you’re negotiating cold winters in a food manufacturing plant, it can be a much bigger challenge. Perhaps you’ve even experienced it.

This poses a great question for production managers: what do you do when bulk olive oil solidifies?

Luckily, there’s lots of reasonably simple ways to handle this in your warehouse. Long story short, you’ll need to heat the oil to liquify it, which will allow you to get pumping. The other good news is that when olive oil solidifies, the quality remains the same, so you have nothing to worry about.

Alchemy Systems works with some of the biggest brands in the food industry helping them save money, reduce risk and manage their operations. They also provide consulting that helps companies “protect their people, profits and brands”. Their specialty focuses on food safety, workplace safety and operations solutions that will optimize food production front lines.

Recently, I sat down with Holy Mockus, an expert at Alchemy Systems. Holly and I spoke about some of the challenges and trends that she sees in the food industry, and how she would recommend that companies begin to tackle them.

To give you a bit of background, Holly has over 30 years of experience in the food industry at companies like ConAgra, Kellogg, and Sara Lee.

This article was originally published by Alchemy Systems, and is published here with permission.

This article was originally published by Alchemy Systems, and is published here with permission.

HACCP Plan reassessments are required to be performed at least once a year. It is not only mandated by USDA and FDA regulations, but also by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) for companies certified under SQF, BRC, FSSC 22000 or IFS. In short, your HACCP plan should be a living document that continually and accurately reflects current operations. It assures your food safety system is kept up-to-date throughout the year.

Reassessments are necessary whenever any changes occur that could affect your hazard analysis or alter any current HACCP plans.