Creating a Fresh Food Safety Culture

With the potential for fresh fruits and vegetables to be contaminated with harmful germs anywhere in the supply chain, and for pathogenic bacteria to grow on fresh meats due to improper storage temperatures, it’s no wonder that many consumers have likely experienced a food safety issue. A recent “DEEP Study on Food Safety” from Sensormatic Solutions by Johnson Controls and Progressive Grocer found that 56% of the 1,000-plus grocery shoppers surveyed had experienced a food safety issue in the past. More than one in four (28%) experienced an issue in the past year alone. This highlights the widespread issue of grocers needing to create a better food safety culture by accelerating efforts to digitize fresh management.  

[For more info on the Sensormatic’s food safety study, CLICK HERE to view “Consumer Expectations for the Future of Food Health & Safety” on-demand webinar.]

Smarter Food Safety 

Digital tools help grocers enforce safety standards, reduce risk, and protect a store’s brand by optimizing and improving safety and quality protocols, and shoppers agree. According to Sensormatic’s survey, 57% of respondents say that having automated “smart system” temperature controls would be a helpful step taken by grocery stores to ensure food safety, while 49% say that having a comprehensive digital food safety solution would be helpful.  

“Tech tools provide essential data, allowing store owners and managers to spot trends, including areas of noncompliance, to mitigate risks,” says CJ Pakeltis, account manager at Salt Lake City-based RizePoint, a quality management software provider. “Data provides key insights across the organization and/or drilled down to individual stores.”

Tech solutions also help boost transparency. 

“Historically, food businesses conducted safety protocols ‘behind the scenes,’ but since COVID, there’s been an increased demand for transparency,” notes Pakeltis. “Key audiences expect to see safety protocols being implemented correctly and consistently. Even if customers order their groceries to go, they want to see ‘proof’ of safe food practices, such as cold food being transported in coolers, raw proteins being separated from ready-to-eat foods, and high-quality items arriving at their doorstep.”

Being able to safely monitor compliance is especially essential as current conditions dictate that many stores operate with limited staff who are often stretched too thin. 

Sensormatic is helping grocers comply with safety standards. In early March, the Swiss retail solutions provider added the PENN Connected Digital Food Safety System to its Sensormatic IQ intelligent operating platform. PENN Connected helps manage data monitoring, recording and reporting to help ensure that food is stored, prepared and consumed safely. Adding it to Sensormatic IQ platform capabilities helps improve operational efficiency through remote refrigeration monitoring. The digital food safety solution helps retailers with compliance by monitoring product storing temperatures, both hot and cold, via remote monitoring. Through prompt alerts, retailers can intervene early if a temperature issue arises. 

Midwest grocer Coborn’s recently expanded its collaboration with Mississauga, Ontario-based Invafresh to optimize fresh food operations throughout its banners. The St. Cloud, Minn.-based grocery chain deployed the tech company’s fresh food retail platform for its merchandising and replenishment solutions.

Coburn’s made the move in light of pressures and complexities in managing fresh food operations and staying compliant with food safety. A food traceability solution allows Coborn’s to adhere to U.S. Department of Agriculture requirements for ground beef recordkeeping. Robust fresh food traceability capabilities identify problems faster, therefore reducing recalls at retail and lowering liability in case of food safety issues.

Meanwhile, Boise, Idaho-based Albertsons Cos. implemented the Procurant One technology platform from Watsonville, Calif.-based Procurant across all of its retail banners for purchasing and order management in the produce department. A cloud-based buying application, the Procurant One system connects all suppliers and stakeholders across Albertsons’ supply chain for perishable foods, giving its buyers more visibility and insight when placing orders and allowing automated fulfillment of routine orders. All participants across the supply chain get better information, faster issue resolution, easier collaboration, and a practical foundation for improved food safety and traceability.