This is a slide deck from a presentation about how food manufacturers can add technology to collect their traceability information thereby making the information available for cost and yield calculations, allergen and QC food safety tracking and overall understand their profitability across items and customers. Information is power. You have to collect it so why not use it to grow your business.

1. with Judith Kirkness

2.  Small Business Owner
 Over 20 years experience
working with food manufacturers
 Use software and technology to
solve problems, gain efficiencies
 Lifelong learner
 Author

3. Done to satisfy the government inspector
Something QA/QC takes care of
Requirement of GFSI certification
It’s just a Cost

4. Given that you are tracking the
information anyway, how can you get
it working for you for a competitive
advantage?

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Increase Jobs (stimulate our economy)
Increase skill set of Ontario workers
Ensure safe foods (for us and to preserve
Canadian reputation)
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Encourage Entrepreneurship (small
business are the current job creators)
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Improve labour productivity
Help you sell more

6. •
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ERP
Traceability software, inventory/warehouse management
Customization of existing software to get programs connected
Network server installation
Hardware: label printers, barcode/RFID scanners for
traceability use
Mobile devices for traceability collection
Cables and wiring to get hardware connected
Enclosures to protect traceability equipment
Integration Consulting and services for the above
Training your staff and management

7. •
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ERP
Traceability software, inventory/warehouse
management
Customization of existing software to
software pieces talking
Network server installation
Hardware: label printers, barcode/RFID
scanners for traceability use
Mobile devices for traceability collection
Cables and wiring to get hardware
connected
Enclosures to protect traceability
equipment
Integration Consulting and services for the
above
Training your staff and management
•
•
•
•
•
•
Increase Jobs (stimulate
economy)
Increase skill set of Ontario
workers
Ensure safe foods (for us and
to preserve Canadian
reputation)
Encourage Entrepreneurship
Improve labour productivity
Help you sell more

9. Canadian recalls for year ending March 2012
142
24
31
104
301
allergen related
due to chemical residue
due to extraneous matter
due to microbiological or other food safety concern
Recalls total
Recall reporting is the most important feature for
protecting your brand – time is of the essence

10. We hope you do more mock recalls
than real ones!
So traceability collection needs to offer
more to be of value…

11. Bringing information together for analysis can
improve your business in meaningful ways!

12. Let me share 5 ways…

13. Item attribute and item substitution tracking/alerting, supplier approvals

14. • QA/QC Information storage
• Use information for release of product for
sale
• Produce the specific Certificates of
Analysis (CofA’s) for each shipment
• Linking batches to their test results should
there be a problem with a finished good

15. How are you calculating your costs now?
In your head?
Using spreadsheets?
With pen and paper?

16. • What goes into your raw material costs?
(landing factors)
• Do you assemble or disassemble
products, or both?
• Costing by batch is a RESULT of entering
quantities of inputs and outputs
• Timely, accurate and also depletes raw
materials or WIP as it creates finished
goods

17. • Regular, timely comparison of
inputs vs. outputs
• How did yield knowledge help
Halenda’s?

18. •
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If the system knows your costs and
knows what you sold each item for to
each customer, it can compute PROFIT
across your items and your customers
Computers can track and deduct
marketing program costs to give you
true profit figures?

19. •
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Inventory control that includes
traceability and expiry information
combined with reporting can alert you to
approaching dated product
Damaged product can be adjusted out
or scanned to a damage location
FIFO suggestion can help determine
missing units from a lot

20. •
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ERP or integrated business management systems
Customer portals and dashboards
Barcode scanning and handheld warehouse
management
Plant floor equipment (scales, PLC’s) feeding your
ERP system
Touch screen plant floor weigh/label stations
Mobile worker tablets, scanners, and printers

22. • Supplier labels?
• Your labels
• Your facility – slot or location labels
• Label printers for GS1-128

23. 1. Choose your software first
2. Don’t skimp on infrastructure
(wireless network)
3. Get the right handheld or
scanning devices for your
environment

24. • Tablets
• Cellular handhelds
• Mobile printing

25. We all compete against worldwide players. To win,
you need a goal, a plan, people given the right
training, time to develop and leadership to WIN.