How to Prevent Mislabeling in Food Manufacturing
Fostering a culture of accuracy, efficiency, 适当的质量控制措施是加工者达到标签程序高标准的最佳途径. Mislabeling is a hazard to consumer safety, productivity, profitability, and reputation. At Carlisle Technology, 自1985年以来,我们的团队一直致力于为食品加工行业提供综合标签解决方案.
In a recent article, 我们讨论了美国的食品标签要求,并分享了如何始终保持合规的建议. 在这篇文章中,卡莱尔的专家们分享了他们关于如何防止生产过程中贴错标签的最佳建议, especially in meat and poultry processing plants. The best lesson we learned from our decades of experience, 拥有无缝称重和标签过程的关键是使用正确的拉菲2注册登录解决方案以及高质量的硬件组件吗.
In order to deal with the hazard to consumer safety, 错误标签对公司声誉和盈利能力的影响我们会看一下与错误标签相关的成本.
Penalties for Mislabeling
Mislabeling can be a nightmare for food processors. It’s important to understand the business risks around mislabeling.
有很多很容易犯的错误,这可能导致产品贴错标签. Some of these include:
- An operator selects the wrong roll of pre-printed labels from inventory, causing a label mix up on a packaging line
- Production volume is increasing, operators overlook if the label matches the work order to accommodate pressure
- 使用旧技术和硬件的处理器容易受到不正确的打印和标签应用的影响
- Manual processes can lead to incorrect or absent allergen and nutrition fact information
对这些原因的处罚是严重的,可能会对食品加工商在各自市场的经营能力造成影响.
In Canada and the USA, 不遵守消费品包装的适当标签程序可能导致以下后果:(引用)-加拿大政府
- Government intervention to order a complete recall of identified consumer products
- 政府可以命令食品加工商检测和研究消费产品,费用由加工商承担
- Financial and Legal ramifications up to $5 million dollars and imprisonment of up to 2 years
- Seizure of information for production records, and products for evaluation.
- Business license suspension
A processor doesn’t just have to worry about Government ramifications, but also supplier ramifications. Many top food processors today supply some of the biggest grocery store chains such as Walmart, Costco, Kroger, etc. 这种口径的分销商要求他们的供应商严格和准确的标签要求,并将征收费用, restrictions, and other measures for violating these terms.
在供应商和分销商达成协议之前,这些条款在供应商行为准则中进行了概述.
Some of these penalties include: (Citation) – Walmart Supplier Code
- Dissolution of Supplier/Distributor agreement for multiple infractions of mislabeling
- Financial penalty of up to $5,000,000 Depending on the severity of the situation
- 向联邦政府提交的关于违反消费者食品处理和生产法的正式报告
All of these are potential threats because of mislabeling in food production. This stresses the need for a processor to have a robust, 技术支持的系统与正确的检查和平衡,以确保一致性和标签的准确性.
Preventing Mislabeling
To prevent mislabeling in your production facility, stick to the following tips:
- Simply the process for weighing and labeling
- Integrate weighing and labeling stations
- Train the organization
Production Managers, Supervisors, 其他相关管理需要在所有生产设施成员中灌输这些检查和平衡,以获得最好的预防机会. 每两周召开一次会议来评估这些指导方针的执行情况,这对于保持一致性至关重要.
Simplify the process for weighing and labeling
如果你有一个复杂的过程,并且解决方案彼此之间没有完全集成, this can lead to higher training costs, more frequent mislabeling, and more work for everyone on your team.
Consider the following to simplify your weighing and labeling process:
- Am I using multiple hardware components that don’t integrate for my weigh and label process?
- Are my label formats being controlled through an MES? If not, then how?
- How does WIP integrate into my weigh and label process?
- Is my current process the most efficient and streamlined?
- Do I have inventory and production reporting insight?
- Do I have frequent mislabeling on my finished goods?
Food processors need to have a unified, 统一的称重和标签过程,使他们的生产无缝和高效的工厂车间. It’s time to consider an alternative labeling method if the current system is not integrated, lacks label format control, and is consistently producing errors.
Integrate Weighing and Labeling Stations
Integrating scales, printers, and scanners into one complete weighing and labeling station, in an efficient way, is critical to preventing mislabeling mistakes. 我们已经看到许多加工商在完全整合其称重和标签站后提高了效率并最大限度地减少了标签错误.
没有集成的手动称重站通常包括不能相互通信的硬件组件. An operator each time needs to weigh a product, manually record the weight from the scale, and create a label for each product. The room for human error is large. This type of process will not just result in financial penalties but will also reduce efficiency. Without integration, throughput will decrease, operators are prone to human error, and there is not a consolidated solution.
Using proprietary hardware, multiple vendors, and a siloed approach to weighing and labeling is going to cause headaches, mistakes, and loss of revenue.
Taking an integrated, consolidated approach helps the processor in a multitude of ways. With an integrated solution, software links all the various hardware components together. This allows the operator to select which product they’re working with, it enables the scale to automatically send the weight to the software application, and finally, the printer automatically prints a label for application. This removes the cumbersome, error-prone process of doing each step manually. An integrated solution also increases throughput for an operator and reduces labeling errors.
Train the Organization
Plant Management need to foster a culture of consistency, accuracy, and efficiency within their operations when it comes to labeling procedures. 当涉及到标签管理和工厂车间标签过程时,需要坚持标准. 为了在整个组织中有效地实现这一目标,需要建立一个过程.
Establishing a regulatory QA position in the organization is critical. They need to oversee, establish label standards, and review any new label formats before they go down to the plant floor. For example, products sent to different countries will have different labeling requirements. These can be based on units of measurement, allergens, and nutritional facts etc. 重要的是,监管QA人员对标签格式的变化有一个全面的了解. Using the incorrect label can cause a multitude of issues. Some include: a recall of all products sent, financial penalties, and a strained supplier/distributor relationship. The regulatory QA individual needs to oversee the safety, quality, and financial importance of correct labeling standards. This needs to be relayed within the organization. They should be able to clarify the need for accuracy, and explain the harm associated with failure to successfully accomplish those tasks.
Management and the executive team of the organization need to work in unison to foster, develop and maintain a culture of consistency, accuracy, and efficiency when it comes to labeling practices. The regulatory QA, HACCP Coordinator, and other relevant oversight roles regarding labeling procedures need to set, regulate, and review label standards before reaching the plant floor. Once this high standard of labeling procedures is met, 管理层需要不断地进行正确的检查和平衡,以确保它得到维护和一致.
Rethink In-motion Weighing and Labelling
当您需要进行动态称重和标签时,另一个复杂性可能会引入工厂车间.
As a food processor begins to scale up their operation to expand into new markets, higher volumes of throughput will be required. 这意味着静态称重和标签解决方案将无法跟上不断增长的需求.
将输送秤与印刷和应用系统集成在大批量加工设施中,对于避免标签错误至关重要. 自动贴标解决方案将提高工厂的生产能力,减少贴标错误. 其中一些错误包括包装盒上的标签位置,以及成品的错误标识和错误标签.
自动运动系统可以提供先进的功能,例如用于在称重之前识别混合产品的入站产品识别. Automated weight and data capture, outbound label verification, reject management, and product sortation. 这些类型的解决方案可以帮助加工商减少整体标签错误并提高生产吞吐量.
How Carlisle Technology Fixes the Problem
拉菲2在线登录注册通过采取称重和标签站的硬件和拉菲2注册登录组件之间的集成方法,消除了头痛和问题. When it comes to weighing and labeling individual product pieces or their packing cartons, operators rave about iCap’s simplicity. Product selection is a simple “touch” away. With that one touch, all of the product-related information is activated including product information, label format, whether it is a fixed or standard weight, and the unit of measure in pounds or kilograms. When the product is presented to the scale, the correct label is printed, and you are ready to weigh again.
拉菲2在线登录注册确保了一个同步的解决方案,利用现成的硬件组件,再加上先进的标签拉菲2注册登录. Carlisle Technology provides an accurate, effective, and streamlined solution for a processor’s weighing and labeling process on the plant floor. One thing that separates us from the competition is our in-house 24/7 support services.
Following these steps will help reduce labeling errors in food manufacturing. If you haven’t invested in your labeling process or have more questions, 拉菲2注册登录的专家,并讨论如何在您的工厂实施标签改进.
如果您对食品称重和标签解决方案有任何疑问,我们很乐意听到您的声音. 给我们一个电话,我们的专家可以帮助您选择正确的称重和标签解决方案,并指导您完成实施过程
Written by: Joe O’Keefe, Account Manager – Carlisle Technology
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