An Article by the Acheson Group “The way we do things around here” – that is the favorite definition of food safety culture for Frank Yiannas, former Vice-President of Food Safety for Walmart, current Deputy Commissioner for Food Policy & Response with the Food and Drug Administration, and author of a couple of books on
One seemingly regular night, Frank Burgwin left the engine running on his locked Freightliner and rushed into a truck stop to grab a takeout hamburger in Arkansas. When he returned to his freightliner, his tractor and the flatbed with 48,000 pounds of aluminum had vanished. An off-duty Consolidated Freight Driver then helped Burgwin find the
If you’re someone who’s audited to a Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) scheme such as Safe Quality Food (SQF) or British Retail Consortium (BRC), you know that internal audits are a key part of your certification. In addition to being a critical element of your program verification, internal audits are one of the most common
“People are like tea bags, when you put them in hot water you find out what they’re truly made of.” I’ve heard various iterations of this aphorism, as I’m sure you have too. As we find ourselves closer to the hectic pre-holiday season, this saying really begins to resonate. Time and time again we see
Over the past 20 years, the way consumers think about food has changed; drastically. Consumers are making dietary decisions based on the information they learn from internet and social media – instead of their doctors and/or the scientific community. As most of us know, the internet is full of conflicting advice: Gluten is bad, carbs
Why does culture matter in a company? Because according to Dr. David Acheson, Founder and CEO of the Acheson Group, no matter where you are in the food chain, the biggest challenges are in food safety which means how people work together to find solutions is key to success. How a company approaches assessing risks
The recent wet winter brought long-needed rain and snow and tested the infrastructure of California (just ask the Oroville Dam operators). It also may have uncovered leaks in your facility’s roof that can cause major problems. The previous years of drought may have allowed the roof to fall off the “radar screen” of your plant
Most of us are not paperwork enthusiasts! This has become evident as I have had the opportunity to visit numerous facilities and interact with management teams in the last year. A common theme has resonated:” Documentation is daunting and where do I even start.” In contrast and to my liking, most realize that although the
