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Thursday, June 23, 2005

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Poll

Home =BB articles=20 =BB Race to traceability

= Print=20 page=20

Race to traceability

Factory floor data systems are the lynchpin in processor=92s = tracebility=20 programs.

FoodProcessing.com

By Mike Pehanich, Plant Operations Editor

It seems = that the=20 more we know about our foods and processes, the more we need to know. We = dig for=20 data, mine it as if it were gold. But with our wealth of information has = come=20 the obligation to use it well.

Both the Bioterrorism Act in the = U.S. and=20 the General Law of 2005 in the European Union have pushed food = processors into=20 record-keeping requirements that will have far-reaching impact on the = safety and=20 quality of the food supply. Both laws are commanding processors to = create=20 flawless systems to track and trace their products.

Mad cow = disease,=20 fears of bioterrorism and proof of genetic identity are just three of = the=20 headline issues that have made traceability =E2=80=93 the ability to = track a product=20 and all its components accurately through their entire history =E2=80=93 = a top-of-mind=20 concern for every processor. Although avoiding human tragedy is the = primary=20 goal, averting corporate tragedy is not far behind. Processors are well = aware=20 that the cost of a recall is huge and far-reaching and the damage to the = brand=20 and corporate image could take years to repair.

The more we = can, the=20 more we must

Automation and computer systems have lighted the = way to=20 service, safety and qualitative capabilities that previous generations = of food=20 processors barely detected on their radar.

Instantaneous = awareness of a=20 product=92s history is at our fingertips. The systems and technologies = to capture,=20 integrate and interpret the necessary data are already in our hands. And = if=20 profit lured processors who invested in early generations of tracking=20 technologies, the clamor for safe food could make their usage=20 universal.

Consider these worldwide developments:=20

Global concern over the spread of bovine spongiform encephalopathy = (BSE),=20 aka mad cow disease, prompted the United Nations Food and Agriculture=20 Organization (FAO) to encourage science-based safeguards, including = animal=20 identification by means of ear tags and electronic systems, to prevent = spread=20 of the disease.
In December 2003, FDA set deadlines for virtually all links in the = food=20 and beverage supply chain to comply with the Bioterrorism Act. It also = added=20 500 new inspectors to begin enforcement. Among the regulations is a=20 =93maintenance of records=94 requirement. It states companies must = maintain=20 tracking records for ingredients and products. The records help track = products=20 found to be adulterated.
Canada=92s Agriculture Policy Framework (APF) announced a goal of = 80 percent=20 traceability for Canadian food by 2008.
Article 18 of the European Union=92s Regulation 178/2002 requires = guaranteed=20 traceability of food and feed at all stages of production and that = tracing=20 information be available to authorities on demand.

Due to their broad usage and universal = recognition, bar=20 codes still provide the foundation for traceability data for most = food=20 products. Photo courtesy of=20 Omron.

More than half the=20 respondents in Food Processing=92s 2005 Manufacturing Survey = ranked food=20 safety their No. 1 concern (see March cover story). The Centers for = Disease=20 Control estimates 76 million illnesses each year in the U.S. stem from = food=20 contamination. Yet no processor wants to release an unsafe product from = the=20 plant.

Added to concerns of contamination are regional concerns = over the=20 safety of genetically engineered foods. EU regulations mandate = documented=20 traceability when a product=92s composition exceeds 0.9 percent = genetically=20 altered material.

Today=92s food products commonly mix components = from all=20 over the world. Is there any doubt the ability to validate the entire = history of=20 an ingredient or raw material may soon be the price of entry into global = trade?

=93The EU requires traceability and transparency in each = stage of=20 the manufacture of a product. Companies are going to have to determine = what=20 systems are going to get them there,=94 says Jerry Mithen, vice = president=20 manufacturing services for Darien, Ill.-based RQA, which conducts = product=20 recalls and advises food clients in crisis management. Large retailers = in the=20 U.S., too, are applying pressure on processors to trace a product = through the=20 supply chain.

A supply chain issue, too

Retailers = like=20 Wal-Mart have added a sense of immediacy to the traceability issue. = Wal-Mart=20 already requires its top 100 suppliers to add radio frequency = identification=20 (RFID) tags to cases and pallets and expects all of its suppliers to = comply with=20 this mandate by January 2006.

But even without external = pressure,=20 tracing capability can prove invaluable in the service of process = optimization=20 and product quality improvement, advancing continuous improvement = initiatives,=20 activity-based costing and various inventory management strategies. = Widespread=20 adoption of hazards and critical control points (HACCP) methodology and = ISO-9000=20 quality systems have advanced systems and technologies to facilitate = process=20 documentation and ingredient tracking.

Food product quality is a=20 constantly changing measure from =93cradle to table.=94 And though the = processor is=20 situated at the center of the action, it takes a wide net stretching = backward=20 and forward from the processing plant to capture a complete product=20 history.

Traceability involves both securing information and = putting it=20 to use. Due to their broad usage, bar code systems are almost = universally=20 recognized and serve as the principal vehicles of information today. But = RFID=20 systems can transfer even more data and thus suggest even greater = tracing=20 potential.

Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems are = designed to=20 integrate and make usable information from diverse areas such as = purchasing,=20 sales, manufacturing, accounts payable, accounts receivable and other = sectors of=20 the operation. Their versatile communications capability also allows = them to=20 link with outside systems.

Michael Angelo=92s Gourmet Foods, a=20 manufacturer of frozen and refrigerated Italian food products based in = Austin,=20 Texas, purchased Ross Systems=92 (http://www.rosssystems.com/) iRenaissance ERP system = five=20 years ago to give greater transparency to its operations and to narrow = variances=20 that were swinging as high as $500,000 per month. In the process, the = company=20 also achieved greater supply chain visibility.

=93The first = information you=20 want is when you receive material at the front door,=94 explains Anass = Bennani,=20 information systems manager for Michael Angelo=92s. =93Ingredients must = be=20 trackable.=94

The company records the supplier=92s lot number as = soon as it=20 receives a shipment =E2=80=93 or as soon after received product has been = determined to=20 be within standard. When an ingredient enters production, its lot number = is=20 linked to formula and production data.

The manufacturer also = enters a=20 local lot number for the production run. This identification may carry = with it=20 such information as expiration date, =93best before=94 date, job number = and other=20 useful, if not critical, information.

Information must flow = evenly with=20 the product, and a good system will track every movement and every = component.=20 Traceability requires that the entire supply chain be transparent and = that an=20 entire product history reads as current so that if bacteria have made = their way=20 into an ingredient, the tracks are evident.

Tracing a product = effectively=20 requires input =E2=80=93 accurate input =E2=80=93 at every significant = step through the=20 supply chain.

=93Some of the technologies, like RFID, are = expensive and=20 still advancing,=94 says RQA=92s Mithen. =93All that is required right = now is=20 provability. You can come out with a three-ring binder if it can provide = proof.=94

How long your loose-leaf pages will suffice is a matter = of=20 speculation.

Lot code numbers provide data about the = manufacturing=20 plant but not a lot of other information up and down the supply = chain.=20 Photo courtesy of=20 Omron.

Insurance companies = are=20 beginning to assert their influence on the food industry as they have on = the=20 medical profession. =93The insurance industry is not interested in = taking a huge=20 loss because a company is not equipped to trace and track,=94 says = Mithen. =93So=20 they are driving much of the improvement in systems. Processors know = that to get=20 insurance premiums down, they must show that they have minimized=20 risk.=94

And while technologies such as bar coding and RFID = facilitate=20 product tracing, they are only as good as the work system they are built = upon.

=93As a general rule, it=92s =E2=80=98garbage in, garbage = out,=92=94 says=20 Bennani. =93You want to make sure your system is perfect, that you have = your=20 procedures in place and your people trained before you apply your = technologies.=20 Otherwise you are just making errors more quickly!=94

Another = user of the=20 Ross system, Berner Foods, a leading manufacturer of private label = cheese=20 products, has used the system to help it comply with current and future=20 regulations regarding product tracing and tracking and to improve = customer=20 satisfaction levels. Company sources claim mock product recalls, which = formerly=20 took up to an entire day to conduct, can now be executed in 30=20 minutes.

Part of your factory data

Thorough = traceability=20 requires long reach into the supply chain. But a lot of the effort = starts with=20 and can be facilitated by your own factory floor data.

Rockwell = Software=20 is launching its RSBizWare software this season. The new tracking and = tracing=20 software will provide =93dock-to-dock product tracking,=94 according to = a Rockwell=20 spokesperson. RSBiz receives raw material and production order = downloads, and it=20 automatically validates transaction data, providing an =93audit trail=94 = of these=20 transactions. It facilitates information updates during system handoffs = with=20 standard transactions for tracking work in process activities, inventory = activities, work order management and item consumption. Genealogy data = is added=20 at each stage of the production cycle.

=93Putting a mark on a = product is=20 step one from a manufacturing perspective. If you have a beef product, = you could=20 be putting a chip in a calf the day it is born to achieve full = traceability,=94=20 says Bill Arnold, partner business manager for Omron Electronics (http://www.omron.com/),=20 Schaumburg, Ill. Omron markets vision inspection, bar code, 2D code and = RFID=20 systems and integration software. =93That is the scenario we seem to be = moving=20 toward as we face mad cow and bird flu diseases. We will want to = pinpoint any=20 source of disease from the feed lot or even a breeding = herd.=94

Throwing a=20 net over problem product is a tricky challenge. The key is to narrow the = products implicated as tainted, not up to spec or otherwise candidates = for=20 elimination with maximum safety and minimum cost. The more critical = information=20 a product has carried with it, the better the chances of meeting these=20 objectives.

Usage date and lot code information are fundamental = on=20 individual products, as is the standard stock keeping unit (SKU). Case=20 identification is also critical, as a particular product characteristic = that is=20 the object of a search may be confined to a specific case or set of = cases. Other=20 information might include plant of manufacture, date of manufacture, = thermal=20 history and more.

The almost universal employment of bar coding=20 technology has made it the obvious choice for the gathering and transfer = of=20 other information deemed critical to tracing food products today. The = problem is=20 you can only get so much information on a label!

Omron has = emphasized=20 improved optical character recognition and verification systems for = increasingly=20 accurate label reading despite the pressure to add more information to = labels.=20 But many believe that more advanced technologies like RFID, which picks = up=20 electronic product code (EPC) information embedded on chips or other = materials=20 placed on cases, cartons or pallets via radio waves, may be necessary to = carry=20 the information necessary to blanket the supply chain.

=93With = RFID, we can=20 have information on a product for every point in time =E2=80=93 where it = was made,=20 while it was being shipped, when it sat in the warehouse,=94 says = Arnold. =93We can=20 determine how many locations this lot went to and can notify people if = there is=20 a problem with a particular lot.=94

But even RFID tags can run = out of room.=20 When that happens, use the Internet. =93I think the biggest change may = be in the=20 marriage of RFID and the Internet,=94 says Sujeet Chand, vice president = of=20 advanced technology and chief technology of Rockwell. =93Maybe all you = need to=20 store on an RFID chip is a URL where all the needed information is = stored.=94 And=20 of course, Chand points out, it=92s not enough to read the data, but = also the meta=20 data.

Chain of custody

No hardware or software tool = can=20 succeed without a system that ensures it is applied effectively = throughout a=20 product=92s seed-to-table cycle. That means inviolable check-off systems = that=20 ascertain a product=92s location in the supply chain with all history=20 intact.

=93A tool is of no value if it is not in a good = =E2=80=98chain of=20 custody=92 system,=94 says RQA=92s Mithen. =93It=92s like a guy with a = briefcase=20 handcuffed to his wrist. The system must say that no step can be taken = unless=20 that handcuff is locked to the next party.=94

=93We want to track = a product=20 from cradle to table. Yes. But transactional tracking =E2=80=93 = recording the change=20 of ownership =E2=80=93 is important, too,=94 adds Arnold. =93They are = both tied=20 together.=94

A good distribution management system includes a = good lot=20 coding system along with an effective system of raw material and = finished goods=20 tracking. Together they comprise the first leg of an effective product = tracing=20 system.

A good audit program records lot codes as product = components=20 enter the plant or production. But the tracks of a product can become = hard to=20 read with so many companies operating under =93no waste=94 manufacturing = edicts.

Recycled product that re-enters the production line must = carry=20 lot numbers and history just like product made from first-time = components, warns=20 John Hoffman, RQA=92s director of crisis management, who believes the = food=20 industry lags considerably behind other industries when it comes to=20 traceability.

But those are the kinds of challenges that = processors are=20 having to face in this game of track and trace.

Nutreco on track to=20 traceability

As if the General Food Law of 2005 and = EU=20 identity preservation requirements were not enough, European = retailers are=20 applying pressure on pressures to prove traceability. =

=93We get lots=20 of requests for audits from retailers and others,=94 reports Kees = Bink of=20 Nutreco Inc., the Netherlands-based processor of salmon, poultry = and=20 animal feed. =93They want to see how we do things. In the = old days, we=20 dove into piles of paper. But today we can trace products almost=20 instantly.=94

Their tool today is NuTrace, a software = product with=20 refined tracing capability that Nutreco developed with Intentia = (http://www.intentia.com/), an international = industrial=20 software manufacturer, in late 2000.

=93The new = traceability=20 requirements in Europe and the States today require that you be = able to=20 trace any material in your product =E2=80=93 where it came from = and where it=20 goes,=94 explains Alf Reime, global accounts director for = Intentia. =93But=20 this information doesn=92t reside inside the ERP system alone. It = is also in=20 the production system, within information from suppliers, in = quality and=20 lab inspection. You need to combine information from several=20 systems.=94

Incorporating the standard Intentia Trace = Engine, NuTrace=20 has been customized to Nutreco operations and systems. Intentia = claims=20 that it was the first tracking and tracing system released in=20 Europe.

=93Many say they have traceability, but when you = dig into it,=20 you find that there=92s information missing,=94 says Reime. =93You = always have a=20 sender and a receiver of information. When I have produced Batch A = and=20 sent it to Truck X, you need a system that follows and records = that=20 handoff. The chain of events must not be broken. Very few systems = have=20 that security.=94

Nutreco=92s suppliers also have benefited = from=20 NuTrace.

=93Along with Intentia, we have spun off a product = geared to=20 farmers, to help them improve their production, too,=94 says Bink. = =93So we=20 are using our system as an optimization tool in our value=20 chain.=94

=93Lots of people focus on internal = traceability,=94 says=20 Reime. =93The really big difference is that we work across the = supply=20 chain.=94

The system has proven to be an effective = marketing tool as=20 well by providing assurance of product traceability to retail = customers.=20

=93Nutreco is a responsible feed and food producer,=94 = says Bink. =93We=20 don=92t just talk. We can show that we have full control of the = value=20 column.=94

NOTE TO THE WHOLE PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT=20 TEAM

Traceability falls on manufacturing because = manufacturing=20 is the stage in which elements are mixed, shaped and enhanced to = bring=20 forth the product that defines the operation. Plus, each of the = elements=20 that converge to make a product during the manufacturing stage = carries a=20 history.

But a tracing system, perhaps more than any other = part of=20 the food manufacturing process, really does require a = multifunctional and=20 collaborative effort that includes R&D, information = technology,=20 purchasing and management.=20

R&D: Find out the tracing capabilities of your = ingredient=20 suppliers. Know their systems, what they track and their ability = to=20 identify their product runs and to trace problems of = contamination or=20 problematic ingredients quickly and accurately within a = well-defined=20 range.
Purchasing: Understand the importance of the = information your=20 company might need to trace and make sure it=92s collected up=20 front.
IT: Determine what internal systems are needed to = track=20 ingredients. Coordinate your efforts with those of ingredient = suppliers=20 so that systems needed to keep a running record of product = information=20 from cradle to table are compatible or easily accessed and=20 deciphered.

=20

HOME =
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