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Ensuring the safety of ingredients
The supply chain is in the capable hands of processors
By Mark Anthony, Ph.D., Technical Editor | 06/02/2008
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Robert Hurlbut honed his safety background when he was CEO of Niman Ranch. There he built the nation's leading brand of premium, natural meat and created an innovative supply chain that allowed sustainable family farmers access to this fast-growing market. Source verification from farm to consumer was critical to maintaining consumer trust.
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Small companies such as Attune Foods must also qualify the quality systems of the copackers and contract manufacturers they use and understand the ultimate sources of their ingredients. |
Now he’s president/CEO of Attune Foods, San Francisco, a venture capital-backed functional food company that makes innovative Probiotic Wellness Bars, which deliver over five times the live active cultures of yogurt.
Hurlbut still is dedicated to source verification. But it is now more complex, requiring close relationships both upstream to ingredient providers and downstream to delivery of product.
“Small companies have a challenge in that they often must use copackers and contract manufacturers and still guarantee food safety and quality,” he says. “Attune Foods invests heavily in controls that are designed to prevent worst-case scenarios. Recent outbreaks have raised customer awareness of ingredients and source verification is critical to maintain consumer trust.”
Ingredient suppliers on guard
Ingredient suppliers are heeding the message, as well.
“FutureCeuticals prides itself on providing high quality ingredients to our customers,” says Colleen Zammer, sales director for FutureCeuticals Inc., Momence, Ill. FutureCeuticals specializes in the discovery, development, manufacturing, processing, growing and marketing of scientifically innovative nutraceuticals, functional foods and cosmetic ingredients.
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Rapid screening using an automated immunoassay instrument is used by an FDA chemist to detect cell surface antigens of salmonella on food products. |
“The type of products and technologies we provide are standardized for functional nutrients that have a measurable affect on the body. Quality is imperative so they not only look and taste as they should, but so we meet our own specifications for those functional nutrients. These natural, health-enhancing products cannot be adulterated with anything that would be detrimental to health,” says Zammer.
“This is not always an easy task, especially in the natural products sector where variation occurs – naturally,” she continues. FutureCeuticals carefully records the critical elements of each of the products it brings in as raw materials and analyzes the finished goods for specific quality-related attributes.
“We have expanded our in-house testing capabilities over the years to be able to detect new actives or adulterants that have emerged on the scene. We also work closely with a couple of key external laboratories that are specialists in certain analyses that we need to leverage on occasion. One cannot be an expert in everything, and as a relatively small company we are perfectly happy to leverage the capabilities of others to provide credible and objective analysis of our products,” says Zammer.
FDA’s mission ‘at risk’On Dec. 3, 2007, the FDA’s Science Board, an advisory committee, adopted the findings and recommendations of its subcommittee issued in a report called, “A Mission at Risk.” This ominous report in summary said the following:There has never been a greater need for an effective FDA to ensure the safety of our foods, drugs, vaccines, medical devices, and a host of other products.The FDA, which traditionally has been one of the government’s most trusted agencies, with scientists and regulators recognized worldwide for their skill and dedication, is being allowed to wither away, its tradition of excellence eroded by lack of support from Congress and the White House.The demands on the FDA have soared in recent years as 50 percent of our drugs and 15 percent of our food supply are imported. Yet, the FDA has lost 20 percent of its scientists and hundreds of inspectors in the past three years.Scientific advances in medicine and technology are exceeding the FDA’s regulatory capacity, a situation that threatens our technological competitiveness and economic future.The FDA’s information technology systems are outdated and inadequate, posing a threat to its public health mission.The FDA’s capability cannot be restored to its former stature of consumer protection without determined effort from Washington. Without action, the cost to our society will be far greater than the costs of rebuilding the FDA. |
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