Contaminated food – supplier checks

Several food scares emerged in 2008 which raised concerns for many food businesses – most recently involving the presence of dioxins in Irish pork.  A few weeks earlier there were recalls on products containing Chinese ingredients containing melamine, and there have been numerous recalls for food items following issues with allergens.

Most of your ingredient suppliers will have diligently followed up with you when information is available.  However, are you confident that all your suppliers would react in this way following a problem or incident involving their ingredients?

As part of your HACCP and traceability system, you should have a system for assessing and choosing your suppliers.  Many food businesses send a manager or chef to visit a premises and discuss business needs when they choose new suppliers, but the hygiene and safety check tends to fall down the list as operational issues are discussed. 

At In House, we believe in simple solutions. For many suppliers, a supplier questionnaire is all that is required to support your own food safety management system and reassure you that your suppliers are up to scratch.  The questionnaire should high-light any areas which may be of concern, so you can take further action, such as arranging an audit of the premises.

We have developed a simple supplier questionnaire for you to send to your suppliers.  Please email us if you would like a copy – we are happy to provide this for you for free, and are also able to carry out audits and inspections of your suppliers if required. 

In these changing financial times, sadly many suppliers may cease to exist, so you may find that you need to replace your current partners.  We can help you to assess the hygiene and safety standards of your new suppliers, including questionnaires, audits, inspections, HACCP review, food sampling etc.

Find out how we can help you with supplier checks and traceability - call us today on 0845 873 2390