This is How One Smart Label Improves Food Safety.

Research from Zebra’s most recent Food Safety Study suggests that only 2 in 10 consumers actually trust food manufacturers and distributors to ensure complete food safety within their operations. Inaccurate track-and-trace systems have played an integral part in major recalls, foodborne illnesses, and crippled brand identities over the years, contributing to the requirements for dependable visibility solutions. Future-forward systems leveraging RFID and wireless data have risen in popularity, spearheading many modernized track-and-trace solutions; however, for growing businesses seeking to place a strategic focus on food safety, these large-scale changes may be more difficult to achieve due to the time and costs involved to implement.

 

While modernized track-and-trace systems benefit businesses of all sizes, there are simpler, supporting solutions to help improve visibility without deploying a completely new system. Developed to react to shifting temperatures, Zebra’s temperature-indicator labels provide at-a-glance insights, so distributors and manufacturers can track temperature exposure and ensure product quality.

 

How They Work

 

Engineered with temperature-sensitive technology, Zebra’s intelligent indicator labels react to the environment and change colors depending on heat or cold exposure. Plus, TransTracker indicators contain strong adhesives to remain applied during cold chain transport, ensuring product integrity once it leaves the facility.

 

Temperature indicator labels are not limited solely to distribution operations. Manufacturers and retailers have also leveraged freshness indicators on perishable items, which can be easily interpreted by shoppers directly at the storefront. Businesses have reported up to 30% more sales when using freshness indicators, which can influence purchase decisions on the spot. Compared to larger systems, freshness indicator labels are relatively inexpensive and easy to use since they are read by both businesses and consumers alike.

 

Is Temperature Sensing Enough?

 

At-a-glance temperature checks empower teams to spot potential spoilage and prevent illnesses, and when it comes to creating a proactive plan, they serve as a great start.  However, a more robust plan may be needed if your facility still experiences…

  • Idle shipments waiting to be refrigerated at the loading dock
  • Wrong shipments sent to your customers
  • Time-consuming audits
  • Complex and/or inaccurate product locationing
  • Recalls that force a complete productivity halt

Because these issues compromise product integrity, they may require a more sophisticated track-and-trace solution that can view and report on all product movement in real-time.

Whether you’re just starting with food traceability or your current product tracking system needs modernization, set up a preliminary evaluation with one of our cold chain specialists.  Learn how you can build or update a food safety solution that grows with your operations without overextending your budget.

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3 Ways to Lower Food Distribution Costs with Intelligent Product Identification

It is estimated that 40% of the entire US food supply is wasted every year due to visibility breakdowns in the storage and transportation process. Missed temperature changes, idle wait times, and overlooked expiration dates can all jeopardize product integrity while slipping under the radar, resulting in mass product recalls and contributing to approximately $161 billion lost in food waste annually. Between fluctuating shortages and increasing last-mile costs, distribution centers have no money -or time- to spend on excessive food waste.

 

That’s where Intelligent Labels Come In

 

As stated so many times before: Manual data entry leaves room for error. Despite this, many businesses still employ pen-and-paper systems due to its simplicity and low cost. On the other hand, the cost of recurrent recalls and damaged brand identity greatly outweigh the savings. To mitigate errors while lowering costs, intelligent labeling systems employing automated data capture and digitized reporting have been shown to increase accuracy up to 99.99%. At its core, a proper labeling system should include…

  • A printer that matches your throughput volume
  • A label that matches application and storage requirements
  • A scanner capable of reading your barcodes regardless of size and location

 

Once these factors are in place, companies can start taking a look at different label types to create a tailored solution. Regardless of which labels are selected, your identification system should aim at…

 

  1. Reducing errors before items progress through your facility – By tagging inventory straight at the receiving dock with long-lasting labels, you prevent early mis-identification and improper storage. Zebra’s Certified Consumables assist with this by leveraging strong adhesives tailored for the application and storage environment. RFID tags take this a step farther by enabling teams to track multiple identifiers with one tag, providing real-time verification through your mobile device.
  2. Accelerated identification with less wait time – Needless to say, automatic data capture is much quicker than manual logging; however, intelligent labels like Zebra’s freeze indicator labels provide at-a-glance temperature monitoring. Moreover, pairing intelligent labels with mobility solutions specifically built for cold chain operations like Zebra’s MC9300 help reduce costs and cycle times to increase sales and sustain easier data sharing even within the cold storage environment.
  3. Simplifies team communication by making track and trace easier – A smoother flow of information and less downtime play a critical role in simplifying track and trace operations. Intelligent labeling solutions streamline track and trace and equip your workers with important data they can use to respond to demands and each other faster. Furthermore, because data is stored digitally, audits become easier to perform, and data can be retrieved from anywhere in the facility between your secured devices.

 

While intelligent labeling sets a strong foundation for maximized visibility, it is only one part of the equation when it comes to lowering operating costs. Before selecting a label match, experts recommend meeting up with a labeling specialist to evaluate your environments and customize a solution that grows alongside your business. In addition to finding your best match, a proper workflow evaluation can also uncover more optimization areas hiding within your operation, giving you the upper hand to overcome challenges before they affect productivity.

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Optimizing Cold Storage: How Warehouses are preparing for the Food Safety Modernization Act Update

The U.S Food and Drug Department (FDA) estimates that nearly 1 in 6 Americans suffer from a foodborne illness per year, resulting in about 128,000 hospitalizations and 3,000 deaths. Needless to say, there is no place for compromise within food safety parameters. Studies show that a mere 20% of consumers completely trust manufacturers to ensure proper safety measurements, and 60% avoid businesses responsible for even one illness incident. To combat illnesses and restore buyer confidence, the FDA has now shifted its focus to proactively preventing illnesses from festering within the manufacturing and distribution process as opposed to simply targeting system breakdowns. Per the updated Food Safety Modernization Act, supply chains will be expected to enhance track-and-trace systems to record and store data for up to 2 years by November of 2022. Data should be retrievable within 24 hours to enable quick farm-to-table traceability. To achieve this, businesses are encouraged to strengthen the following pillars of dependable traceability:

  1. Monitor growing/manufacturing process to ensure only verified ingredients are used.

The FDA’s Food Traceability List allows manufacturers to prioritize real-time visibility for at-risk foods within the very first steps of production. Freezer-ready technologies like the MC9300 can help streamline inventory control by combining data capture and processing onto one digital platform. Rugged labels should also be employed to preserve barcode readability, so ingredients can be verified during production.

 

        2. Optimize communication at the receiving dock, so products are not idly waiting in dangerous temperatures.

Just-in-time replenishment has become evermore commonplace in most distribution centers, which means teams must be able to effectively communicate when items arrive to prevent spoilage or inventory loss. Whether it be through automatic alerts via handhelds or group calls through a push-to-talk system, team communication at the loading dock ensures food safety measures are carried out the moment products arrive.

 

        3. Track handling process for at-risk foods such as shellfish, fruit, leafy greens, eggs, cheese, and ready-to-eat salads.

For real-time inventory management, RFID and locationing systems prove to be indispensable. Because RFID tags can hold as many as 40 different codes per tag, RFID systems empower teams to track multiple status points for each product at once to see if they were handled properly.  Automated data recording further simplifies future auditing since data can be retrieved automatically with less risks for error.

 

        4. Notify delivery teams and other members in the supply chain of shipping timeframes and inventory status.

These FDA changes have placed greater responsibility on the entire supply chain, which means proper tracking must extend beyond the four walls. This is where Bluetooth-powered technologies like Zebra’s Electric Temperature Monitoring Sensors prove highly beneficial as businesses can track transportation temperatures in real-time to prevent spoilage.

 

Regardless of how you choose to approach food safety, one thing is certain: Visibility is key.  Whether it be through enhanced group communication or real-time inventory tracking, businesses must quickly adopt to establish proper food safety standards. For more information on how you can optimize your workflows to comply with the Food Safety Modernization Act, contact our automation specialists here.

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