Don't Let Costly Food Recalls Ruin Your Day

Once again, food producers are faced with recalls due to foeign matter contamination. Plastic and metal fragments were found in frozen ground beef products. In another case, there were approximately 24,870 pounds of frozen chicken and cheese taquito products that may be contaminated with foreign material, specifically metal.

A good HACCP plan includes the use of metal-detectors and x-ray machines to help spot foreign matter before it goes to the consumer. The use of detectable tools and materials in food plants will also help greatly reduce the incidence of foreign matter contamination that gets out to the consumer. You can see a guide to food safety audits here: https://bit.ly/4gN6e18

Detectable materials are made from metal-detectable and x-ray visible plastics, from companies like Detectamet. Color-coding can also help reduce cross-contamination. Solutions like detectable plastic materials hace cost benefits that go beyond the redcution of recalls. In many cases, detectable materials are comparably priced to non-detectacble options, making it a "no-brainer" to incorprate them into your processes. Regular calibration of your machine, using certified test pieces, is also a must.

From a PR perspective, as well as financial, food-production companies should always be working to reduce the risk of preventable recalls. Continuously review your HACCP and safety plans to ensure that you won't have to deal with a costly recall.

-Michael Mallory is the Sales Manager at Detectamet, Inc. - the largest manufacturer of metal detectable and x-ray visible products form food production.