Technical article

Four nightmares for food producers

Four frequent reasons for product recalls - and four simple solutions

Food safety remains a challenge – as shown by the high number of around 12,000 product recalls annually in the EU alone. From illegible labels to missing allergy information, from contamination due to foreign bodies to sealing seams that are not leak-tight: how can manufacturers minimise risks? Here is an overview of labelling and inspection solutions that help automate separation of faulty products.

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roduct recalls are a nightmare for food producers - and not just because they can become extremely expensive. They may result in health risks for consumers, a loss of image with bulk purchasers and end customers, and additional work due to batch tracing. Furthermore, there may be no upper limit to potential costs, whether these are contract penalties, fines, compensation or damages. Serious sanctions and systematic resolution are required to protect the lives and health of people as unsafe food can have dramatic consequences.

Risk factor 1

Missing, incorrect or insufficient labelling

Changes to the law after a deadly baguette

The case of British teenager Natasha Ednan-Laperouse is a tragic one. She was on a flight between London and Paris when the 15-year-old ordered a baguette. She suffered from an allergy to sesame seeds, which were in the baguette but not labelled as such. Shortly after eating it, Natasha died in the plane, with her father present, at 35,000 feet due to anaphylactic shock. This case made international headlines and resulted in what is known as Natasha's Law, which came into force in the UK in 2021. Amongst other things, this law states that all ingredients must be listed in foods and that the allergens are emphasised in the text

The solution: Automatically state contents;

Labelling solutions that can obtain & take on current, complete and accurate product information from a central system for every single change of product, and can avoid human error when labelling. A visual inspection system can also monitor the labels to ensure they are present, positioned correctly and also legible so that misunderstandings can be avoided, such as with the best before date or the ingredients contained within.

Risk factor 2

Contamination with non-metallic foreign bodies

Bits of the conveyor belt in cervelat sausage

Tender, delicious sweetcorn with glass shards, grated Emmentaler cheese with blue plastic, Cervelat sausage containing parts of the conveyor belt: the Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety issues food warnings almost every day in collaboration with the federal states. A glance at their www.lebensmittelwarnung.de portal provides a good impression of how frequently unsafe food reaches the market. The most common variant involves contamination of food with foreign bodies such as glass, metal or plastic parts that are often extremely difficult or even impossible to detect in visual inspections.

The solution: electromagnetic detection of foreign bodies

X-ray inspection systems use electromagnetic waves to detect foreign bodies lurking in a product. This is detected via the difference between a) the specific density of the food and b) the density of the foreign body. X-ray inspection is ideal if contamination in production lines is possible via materials such as metal, plastic, stone, glass or bone. However, if only metal is expected as a contaminant, then a metal detector is the better choice.

Risk factor 3

Contamination with metallic foreign bodies

A loose screw: Metal contamination as a regular reason for product recalls

A piece of solder wire that fell during repair work, a staff member's lost hairpin or a screw that became loose due to vibrations: Contaminations due to metal are one of the most common safety risks in food production. Metal parts can be extremely dangerous, as unintended consumption may result in serious consequences such as internal injuries or broken teeth. Fortunately, metal parts can be readily detected with the right technology.

The solution: search technology for ferrous and non-ferrous metals

Metal detectors use electromagnetic fields to recognise metal contaminants in products. They detect ferrous and non-ferrous metals, as well as non-magnetic metals such as aluminium, copper and lead. Searching purely for metals is expedient where contamination by other materials on the production line is practically impossible. The X-ray inspection systems mentioned earlier should be used in cases where contamination via other materials cannot be completely ruled out.

Risk factor 4

Visible flaws in products and packaging

No reliable expiry date information without a sealed seam

Brown spots on apples in the shrink-wrapped cardboard tray, a broken sausage in a pack of four, or a broken sealed seam on the pack of cheese slices sealed in a protective atmosphere: food quality, hygiene and shelf life do not just depend on hidden contaminants, invisible bacteria or chemical contamination. Also, clearly visible flaws such as those stated above occur regularly in the sector and can seriously affect the manufacturer's reputation as such a flaw has passed through quality control nonetheless

The solution: 100% visual inspection of products and packaging

Monitoring cameras check the integrity of products using factors such as completeness, shape and integrity. Visual analysis of surfaces or structures compares the state with previously defined quality features. Evaluation of camera images improves due to teachable software. The packaging can also be checked as such alongside the products: are the sealed seams completely intact? Are there protruding slices or impurities caught in the seam? Monitoring cameras can also be used to validate the presence, correct positioning, intactness and legally compliant printing of labels

Conclusion

Delivery of unsafe foods can harm people, affect the manufacturer's image, whilst also causing much additional work and high costs. Four of the most common causes of product recalls can be most reliably eradicated by inspection and recording solutions. Affected packages are automatically discarded from the production line - such nightmares are easily avoided.

Production at Alfred Faller

The food industry

The factory at Alfred Faller in Utzenfeld im Schwarzwald produces premium quality jams, stirred by hand in copper pots using traditional production methods.

Founded in 1913
80+ staff
1
600 tonnes of jam produced annually
15 % increase in productivity

Automated quality & transparent data

Together with Bizerba, Alfred Faller wanted to implement an automated quality assurance system that monitored contaminations, overfilling and underfilling. The aim was for data to become more transparent, and to increase machine utilisation to 75 - 80 per cent.

Benefits

The Bizerba solution involved comprehensive digitalisation and networking including new checkweighers, metal detectors, rejection systems, printers and scanners. The effort required for quality assurance was minimised whilst productivity was increased by 15 per cent.