Benefits of Feed Traceability Tools
Product traceability is at the heart of the promise of quality that suppliers make to their customers. It is the golden thread of assurance running through a product to show that the right things happened from the finalized design of the formulation, through production and distribution, to its performance in livestock or pets.
Digital systems providing product traceability bring all the records needed for a product audit together in one place.
It is not particularly glamourous – but being able to trace how the formulation was developed, what went into a production batch, and when and how it was processed and delivered, is a very powerful tool in the armory of modern feed and pet food manufacturers.
Don't Make the Same Mistake Twice
Take, for example, a poultry flock that is not gaining weight as quickly as expected compared with other flocks fed on earlier deliveries of the formulation.
Traceability tools allow the manufacturer to check that everything was correct at each stage of the production and delivery of that feed or identify where something may have gone wrong.
“If there is an issue, product traceability can show where a problem may have been introduced and give pointers to the lessons to be learned to stop it happening again,” says Ian Mealey, Product Marketing Director, Formulation at Format solutions.
Identify Issues Quickly with Software
Different systems provide traceability at different stages of the process to give the full picture. For example, a performance issue on the farm may have several causes. “Formulation traceability tools may show that the formulation was good, and batch records show that ingredients were weighed out correctly, but this is only part of the story,” he says.
If the poor performance was due to low product quality, other traceability records may indicate the production parameters operating at the time. Or perhaps finished product analysis was out of bounds. In this case, quality control records may help to better understand the reasons. The need for a holistic approach as part of your quality management system is clear. “There are numerous places where things can go wrong, but good product traceability means that there is a chain of evidence that ties incoming goods, formulation, process, quality control, and delivery,” he says.
A Comprehensive Toolkit
Each of Format Solutions’ Formulation and Feed ERP software offers traceability tools to suit differing requirements.
Brill and New Century's Archive tools provide archived storage of each new version of a product’s formulation.
To suit more advanced needs, Brill SQL Data Bridge, NC Tracer, and Ara DataTrace are available to record not only the formulation, but also the specification and ingredients that were used to create it, thus giving a full traceability picture.
“All three systems operate in similar ways”, he says. Once a formulation is approved by the Formulator, it is archived in the traceability tool, where it receives a unique Version Number for ease of identification. This is passed along to downstream systems such as the production facility and your Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software.
This Version is used as a link throughout the process – from formulation design to manufacture, labeling and distribution. Along with other identifiers such as Product Code and Batch Number, it allows data to be tied together when carrying out audits or tracing the cause of problems.
For example, a customer complaint will entail the tracking of the order of the product concerned. From this, the details of packing or bulk delivery, the specific version of the product formulation, and the individual batch number from production can all be ascertained. With this information, all stages of formulation, ingredient usage, production, and delivery can be audited for accuracy.
Finding the Root of the Problem
Traceability tools allow a problem to be traced to its source. “Our systems are designed with reporting tools that enable formulations produced on different days to be compared with the standards for each approved formulation,” continues Mealey.
Tracing the source of an issue is often the first step. When an issue is found, decisions and actions must be made about what to do next – both immediately and for longer-term improvement.
In Format Solutions’ Feed ERP systems, the Track and Trace functionality includes tools to action product recalls due to issues with ingredients or finished products. It tracks the intake of ingredients, their use in production of feeds, and the delivery of those feeds to customers. In this way, it knows the impacts when problems are discovered and helps manage the response.
Historically, this kind of information would be stored on signed sheets of paper and stored in filing cabinets – which is both difficult to use and vulnerable. Instead, by using integrated digital databases such as DataTrace and Format’s other tools, traceability becomes far easier and more secure.
The Benefits of Going Digital
Electronic systems also make it possible to monitor trends such as gradual changes in formulations over time. This can be useful for internal and external auditing and correlation to other observed changes, such as animal performance. The reporting tools mentioned above, which are found in all our traceability tools, are useful for exactly this purpose.
Advanced software systems not only give users and customers the assurance and peace of mind that their products meet specifications, they also simplify auditing processes and, in the event something does go wrong, ensure the problem can be swiftly traced so it can be rectified and future recurrence prevented.
Traceability should form part of a total quality approach to feed and food production. Preventing problems occurring in the first place is fundamental, but tracking what happened across all aspects of the business allows us to learn, understand, and improve when things don’t go to plan.
To learn more about Format Solutions and how our tools can help you design and manage recipes with confidence, ensuring excellent results and performance every time, get in touch.
