FSMA Rollout: The Crucial Need for Automated Inventory Systems

With the rollouts of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) and the Safe Food for Canadians Act (SFCA) underway, produce companies are diligently organizing their facilities. This preparation includes analyzing potential hazards, creating comprehensive food safety plans to mitigate those hazards, and aligning traceability systems with industry standards.

A key requirement shared by both the FDA and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is the ability to provide lot shipment and traceability data within 24 hours of a request. Achieving this with manual pen-and-paper approaches is nearly impossible.

Most growers, packer-shippers, and food distributors are increasingly interested in automated inventory systems. Essential to this process is case labeling with GS1 Global Trade Identification Number (GTIN) and Lot Number, ensuring visibility throughout the entire supply chain. (For more information on GS1 case labeling, visit http://www.producetraceability.org/ and https://www.gs1us.org)

Managing full-pallet shipments is straightforward, but less-than-pallet or mixed-pallet shipments pose significant challenges. The need to record Critical Tracking Events (CTEs) such as receipts, packing, processing, and repacking further complicates the process. Manual systems simply cannot meet these demands in any efficient or effective manner.

Software for Electronic Data Capture

Software is essential to effectively track and manage this information. Key functions of inventory management software include:

• Managing inventory and providing visibility to sales and operations
• Record key transactions of critical tracking events (CTEs) such as product receipt, transformation (packing/repacking/value-add processes), and shipping
• Printing barcode labels for cases and pallets
• Supporting electronic transactions
• Providing traceability information from receipt to shipment
• Offering recall tools for both mock and actual recalls

When evaluating software options, it’s important to look at the company developing it, the software itself, and the service and support needed for implementation and training. When looking at each option, consider the following:

1. Is the system user-friendly for reliable and consistent data entry by workers?
2. What internal resources are required? IT staff, servers, training staff, help desk support?
3. Does the system use mobile computers to capture real-time data at the point of activity, or does it require operators to key in data after the fact?
4. Does it meet produce industry-specific needs?
5. Is it accessible on demand from mobile devices as well as PCs?
6. What does the onboarding and training look like?

If you lack in-house IT staff, consider the advantages of cloud-based solutions. Benefits include (1) not having to buy, maintain, and support an in-house server, (2) subscription-based models that shift costs from depreciable assets to operating expenses (consult your accountant for implications), and (3) provider-maintained training and support staff.

For companies with in-house IT staff capable of supporting the necessary network hardware and services, proprietary software and systems could be considered.

Regardless of the choice, selecting a solution that best fits the staffing and business needs is crucial to meeting both internal and regulatory requirements.