Tag Archives: food safety

When Two Companies Combine Their Passions: It Creates a Dynamic Duo

What do you get when two award-winning companies combine their passions? Something extraordinary!

Lithonia, GA (USA), October 09, 2012 — What do you get when two award-winning companies combine their passions? Something extraordinary! At a time when some organizations are beginning to question should employees be required to go through food safety training just like management; This Is It BBQ and Seafood is ahead of the game with the implementation of their employee level training program conducted by the award-winning food safety firm, The Benson Mills Group ( http://www.BensonMillsGroup.com ).

This Is It BBQ and Seafood founded in 1983 is one of Atlanta’s most emerging restaurant chains. The chain and its owners have been locally and nationally recognized for their exceptional hospitality and authentic, home-style recipes; which are never short on down-home southern flavor. In what can be described as a “dynamic duo,” The Benson Mills Group and This Is It came together to embark on a food safety training and auditing program at its six locations with a single, mutual goal in mind: serving safe and delicious food. The program began with six-weeks of training; which had a two-fold approach: classroom training that focused on theory and in-unit training that focused on application. At the inception of the training program an assessment was conducted to determine the employees’ food safety knowledge followed by in-depth food safety training. At the conclusion of the training program a final assessment was conducted to more thoroughly assess the retention of the information presented throughout the entire program. Two-weeks after the final assessment an unannounced training visit was conducted; which allowed Benson Mills Group to engage employees in verbal articulation and demonstration of the food safety knowledge gained through the training program. As an incentive, an individual winner who exhibited the best display of knowledge and demonstration was selected from each location and awarded a $25 gift card.

The training was recognized by This Is It’s management as being very detailed and informative. Management admired the fact that Benson Mills Group ( http://www.BensonMillsGroup.com ) listened to and captured the needs of their organization. What This Is It’s management valued most was Benson Mills Group took their time and worked with the employees and sometimes if needed they worked one-on-one them; the level of interaction the employees received kept them engaged and excited about attending the training sessions each week.

The next program phase for This Is It BBQ and Seafood is the auditing phase. This phase involves several focus areas:
1) Acclimating employees to auditing; which is designed to reduce their anxiety during inspections by local regulatory personnel;
2) Encouraging staff to develop a habit of doing things right the first time
3) Conducting audits that are solution-driven; and
4) Reviewing and revising (if necessary) operating procedures to ensure maximum effectiveness.

The Benson Mills Group is an award-winning food safety firm specializing in food safety training, food safety auditing and commercial cleaning. For more information, call (404) 451-4468 or visit: http://www.BensonMillsGroup.com

Press & Media Contact:
Terri R. Waller, MPA, CFSM, HACCP
Benson Mills Group, LLC
P.O. Box 1238
Redan, GA 30074 – USA
404-451-4468
Terri@BensonMillsGroup.com
http://www.BensonMillsGroup.com

Food Safety Consultants and Ryan Systems Join Forces to Offer TransCert Certification to Food Transporters to Satisfy FDA Food Supply Chain Audit Trail Requirements

Food Safety Consultants and Ryan Systems have formed a strategic partnership to offer affordable TransCert certification solutions to food transporters who must comply with the FDA’s new guidelines for record keeping and traceability within the food supply chain.

San Diego, CA (USA), August 01, 2012 — Food Safety Consultants (www.CertificationFoodSafety.com) and Ryan Systems (www.RyanSystems.com) have formed a strategic partnership to offer affordable TransCert certification solutions to food transporters who must comply with the FDA’s new guidelines for record keeping and traceability within the food supply chain. This will make it easier for air freight forwarders, rail, truck fleets, handlers and air cargo transporters to address FDA requirements for food safety, sanitation, temperature monitoring,and shipment traceability.

TransCert (Transportation Certification) is an industry certification that requires food transportation handlers to establish HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point)plans and meet sanitation, temperature control traceability, and record keeping reporting requirements established by the FDA under the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).

In compliance with the FDA’s drive for prevention and safety within the food industry, HACCP planning, implementation and corrective actions are the accepted means to preventing food illness outbreaks. The FDA’s new food safety supply chain model is intended to drive liability and HACCP compliance through all food supply chain handling operations. Newly established administrative rules require food container record keeping, traceability and reporting to reduce recalls resulting from adulteration and cross contamination occurring during food transportation.

Responding to these imperatives and others to be established by the FSMA, Dr. John Ryan, who recently retired as the quality assurance administrator for the Hawaii State Department of Agriculture and is now president of Ryan Systems, established the TransCert standard to satisfy current and expected FDA food safety requirements for the nation’s food supply chain. Ryan has played a lead role in launching the Sanitary Cold Chain (www.SanitaryColdChain.com), which is designed to provide transportation certification services for truck, rail and other food transportation handlers.

Ryan observes, “Interior wash, sanitation and testing stations; Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking; Radio Frequency Identification (RFID); and other sensor enabled temperature and humidity monitoring technologies have been tested by Ryan Systems to establish transportation sanitation and traceability standards for food transporters. The TransCert standard provides guidance and a cold chain audit base line for food transporters. Food Safety Consultants (FSC) adds strong HACCP consulting experience to help clients prepare for an independent TransCert audit that verifies procedures and record-keeping to satisfy FDA food safety requirements.”

A business unit of Pacific Sunrise Ventures LLC, Food Safety Consultants (FSC) has seasoned experts to help companies in the food supply chain prepare for certification audits under Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) bench marked standards. “Applying our capabilities to food transporters is a logical step for us,” notes Al Kernek, FSC co-founder, “Our consultants are HACCP experts and Ryan Systems has RFID temperature monitoring and recall traceability expertise. His company is also able to provide food container sanitation resources and guidance. Together, we offer inclusive solutions to food transporters which provide documented proof of food supply chain safety. This is invaluable data when it comes to satisfying audit trail demands of FDA inspectors and reducing company liability, which is why a TransCert certification is quickly gaining awareness among food transporters.”

Air freight forwarders, rail, truck fleets, handlers and air cargo food transporters interested in achieving the TransCert certification may contact Food Safety Consultants at 888-799-2678 Extension 1 or Ryan System at (951) 746-2294 for information.

About Pacific Sunrise Ventures LLC:
Pacifica Eureka LLC is headquartered in San Diego, California. Its founders each bring over thirty years of professional experience in sales, marketing, consulting and international standardization. Learn more by visiting the Food Safety Consultants website at http://www.CertificationFoodSafety.com or email contact at info@CertificationFoodSafety.com.

Pacific Sunrise Ventures LLC Media Contact: Al Kernek, Co-Founder, Phone: (888) 799-2678 x700, Email: akernek@CertificationFoodSafety.com

About Ryan Systems:
Ryan Systems provides integrated food safety and traceability quality control solutions for the transportation sector and for the producers, retailers and processors that depend on transportation services. The company specializes in supply chain compliance and delivery control and helps supply chain clients guarantee the safety and quality of delivered products. Learn more by visiting their website at http://www.RyanSystems.com or email contact at jryan@ryansystems.com.

Ryan Systems Media Contact: John Ryan, PhD, President, Phone: (951) 746-2294, Email: jryan@ryansystems.com

Press & Media Contact:
Al Kernek, Co-Founder
Pacific Sunrise Ventures LLC
8677 Villa La Jolla Dr. #123;
La Jolla, CA 92037
(888) 799-2678 x700
akernek@CertificationFoodSafety.com
http://www.CertificationFoodSafety.com

Food, Pharma, Medical Device Manufacturers to Meet for First Trade Fairs on Testing

Human Life Science Test (HuLST) Expo is inaugurating three trade fairs under one roof in Cologne, Germany, from February 8-10 – Medical Device & Technology Test Expo, Pharma Test Expo and Food & Beverage Test Expo.

Dorking, Surrey, January 20, 2011 — Only safe products are profitable and only testing can ensure product safety. With this in mind, HuLST Expo is launching the first-ever trade fairs dedicated to testing solutions for manufacturers of pharmaceuticals, medical devices and food and beverages.

Manufacturers, testing and quality assurance scientists and professionals will be meeting in Cologne, Germany, from February 8-10, to view the latest tools and processes the testing industry offers to ensure that products are safe at each stage of their development.

“HuLST Expo ( http://www.hulst-expo.com ) comes after two years of extensive work and follows the realisation that the ‘testing cat’ is permanently out of the bag as far as the manufacturer is concerned,” says David Stradling, HuLST Marketing Director. “We say this because industrialists no longer use their test programmes just for the sake of safe market passage but also as means of reassuring customers and end users of their commitment to product safety, quality and integrity. Today’s consumer has a greater sense of product testing than ever before, which gives manufacturers a psychological edge as it lends confidence and credibility to the end product.”

Visitors to HuLST Expo can address their testing requirements, no matter which sector they work in. A few examples follow:

* Medical Device & Technology Test Expo will showcase diverse testing products and services, including materials durability testing instruments from BOSE GmbH, stent measurement devices from Heinz Schade, and the pre-clinical implant and materials testing from SpineServ GmbH.

* Pharma Test Expo will offer the analytical instrumentation and solutions for physical and chemical characterization of pharmaceutical solids from PANalytical GmbH, and the texture, powder and flow analysers from Stable MicroSystems GmbH, to name only two exhibitors.

* At Food & Beverage Test Expo, food safety and quality assurance professionals can find systems for odor, taste and visualization profiling from AlphaMOS, rapid testing methods for Salmonella from DSM Nutritional Products, and mass spectrometry instrumentation for the alcoholic beverages sector from Bruker Daltronic.

In addition to the exhibits, visitors can attend forums, workshops and keynote addresses examining the testing industry’s current issues and solutions. These presentations will run throughout the three days and their open format invites attendees to participate in the subjects that are most relevant to them. To view the current schedule of presentations, please view our web site at: http://www.hulst-expo.com.

Life science manufacturers interested in exhibiting at any of the three fairs should contact: Thomas Standley on + 44 1 306 803031, t.standley@hulst-expo.com.

Visitors can avoid the queues and pre-register for a FREE, three-day pass to both dedicated exhibition and speakers areas up until February 7. Entry on the day is Euro 35.

HuLST Expo 2011 is being staged for the first time to deliver a unique environment in which test and evaluation specialists from all three of the sectors covered by its umbrella events can meet and get to grips with testing and QA problems and solutions, and learn from the extensive programme of speaker forums and presentations.

Press Release Submitted by: WorldWidePR.net

Press & Media Contact:
David Stradling
Marketing Director
HuLST EXPO
10 Dunley Hill Court
Ranmore, Dorking
Surrey RH5 6SX UK
Tel: +44 (0)1306 803032
Mob: +44 (0)7702 889702
stradling@hulst-expo.com
http://www.hulst-expo.com