It can seem nearly impossible to keep up with all of the requirements and regulations for food manufacturers. No one understands that better than Martin Ziegler, the co-founder of the Bonney-Ziegler Group. With over 25 years of experience in food safety and quality management systems, he understands everything it takes to build proper food safety management systems. We sat with him to get his perspective* on the common issues food manufacturers face in an ever-changing industry.

 

We’re a small company, we don’t have to follow all the same standards as major manufacturers, do we?

Regardless of the size, requirements for inspection and certification apply equally to all companies. 

Our company just completed our employee trainings, so we should be all set until they expire and need to be conducted again, right?

Training is not a one and done. Behaviors need to be enforced day in and out until they are habitual.  You can’t assume that just because everyone has been trained that all necessary actions are being completed consistently. It is also not enough to simply train your employees and send them off to work. Your team must understand the whys of your process. Employees need to have a firm grasp of the importance of their tasks and the effects it has on the safety of your product. It only takes one employee to contaminate your food products and cause a recall, so be sure everyone on your team understands the significance of their responsibilities. 

We are still a young company, so it doesn’t make sense for us to over-train our workforce, does it?

As a new business it’s imperative that you are sufficiently training all employees. Otherwise, your company will be playing catch-up to requirements and the industry instead of staying ahead of the game and leaving yourself open to opportunities to grow. Don’t forget to provide concrete proof of your trained behaviors with daily documentation that all mandatory steps of your processes are being followed.

Our employees have good habits, so why would we burden them with unnecessary paperwork?

What is not documented never happened. Just because specific forms of documentation may not be required, does not mean that a time will not come where you will need to provide proof of standards being applied in your processes. The importance of paperwork is severely underestimated. When done correctly, documentation helps reinforce positive habits, supports employee accountability, and provides discipline for employees. Not only that, but paperwork can also show when processes are and are not being followed correctly. If paperwork exists that proves processes have been followed correctly, then it will be easy to see that the problem does not lie within the team, but the process itself. Companies can then make the necessary changes from there. Sufficient and effective documentation helps keep track of positive and negative trends to keep a company proactive. Rather than being forced to react, your business can act on negative trends before they become a larger issue or take advantage of positive trends to further increase their benefits.

We’re developing a new management system, so should the management team be the ones to write it?

Employees of all levels and functions of a business should be involved in developing and implementing a management system. By making employees of all backgrounds part of the development, description, and documentation; your new system will reflect the entire company and give employees a sense of ownership. When everyone feels part of the process, they will be more likely to appropriately follow the new system. Full acceptance and awareness can only be achieved when everyone is included, which will in turn, reduce the risk of food contamination substantially. Including employees from all backgrounds will also provide valuable, diverse perspectives that could be missed if system development was left solely to the managerial teams. 

What should a business expect when they start to work with a consultant such as yourself? 

When starting off with a new project it’s important that everyone understands the purpose, timing, goal, available resources, expectations, and level of involvement of the project. It’s important to set realistic expectations to make sure what needs to be done can be completed in the time allotted. For something like an international certification, my job is to help to unveil what I call “the mystery of the standard” and translate the language of a certification into digestible terms so everyone can be on the same page. 

We have our necessary certifications. Why would we bother worrying about attaining any that aren’t currently required of us?

In food manufacturing, being future-oriented is going to help lead you to success. It takes time to build, implement, and maintain systems and it is not advisable to make these changes when there are time restraints. As a business you need to look to the future, see the direction you’re heading in, and anticipate what requirements will be needed for your business. You must ask yourself if you are enforcing the kind of regulations that are going to allow your business to grow to where your goals are? If you are hoping to develop your business to a certain point in one year’s time, now is the time to start working on those requirements! A solid system takes 9-12 months, including certifications.

Our company seems to be having so many breakdowns in communication. What can we do to prevent this?

A lot of the key communications within a company are happening between its supervisors and the operators. Supervisors are the key connection between the management and the operators. So often operators feel like they are not included by their management team when the supervisors are not aligned with the management team, which leads to frustration. People feel left out and not part of the system when important communications are not reaching them. Related to this, many times company supervisors and/or leadership are promoted based on their technical skills, and not necessarily their people, communication, or delegation skills. Also, many employees promoted to leadership positions are not provided with the tools or required trainings necessary to properly understand their new role and responsibilities. 

Effective communication needs to be happening at all levels of a company. Each company and each department within it has its own unique needs and must develop their own ways of communicating efficiently. We cannot assume what works in one area will work in all areas. 

What advice can you give us after everything you’ve learned from your years in the industry?

A system is a journey, not a destination. That means you should always look for improvements and anticipate future requirements because the system is never “finished.” You can’t become complacent because what works today might not work tomorrow. It’s also important to understand that a certification is a promise, not a trophy. When you achieve an international certification, you make a promise to your customer that you need to follow through with every day, and you and all of your employees must understand that promise. 

 

Food manufacturers know that the only constant in this industry is change. Whether it’s keeping up with new regulations, applying for required certifications, or properly training your workforce, there are always new obstacles to overcome. MTEC has years of experience helping small to mid-size manufacturers navigate the complexities of maintaining productive manufacturing processes. If you need help streamlining your systems and achieving your goals, reach out to MTEC today! We have the expertise necessary to guide you to a successful future. In addition, if you are interested in this service and setting up a complimentary visit to discuss in further detail, please call Phyllis Levine, Director of Administration, at (845)391-8214 Ext. 3001 or via email to phyllis.levine@hvtdc.org.

*This article and its responses are based on an interview conducted with Martin Ziegler and are not his words directly.