President Obama has followed through with his pledge to address food safety, forming the Food Safety Working Group in March. The project continues to gain momentum as a new, public health-focused approach to food safety is developed.
"One in four people get sick every year due to food-borne illness. Our food safety system must be updated" said Vice President Joe Biden. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack was even more forceful: "We owe it to the American people to deliver on President Obama's bold promise to greatly enhance our food safety system, moving our approach into the 21st century, employing the best surveillance techniques available, and ensuring that we are doing all we can to prevent illness before it occurs."
The growing concern with food safety and traceability will impact not only domestic production, but imported foods as well.
A New Three-Part Quality Initiative
The Commodity Concern Certification program, with its unique three part quality promotion initiative is an excellent, cost efficient resource for companies who need to take proactive steps to comply with the new, stricter requirements. The program benefits consumers, retailers, importers and quality producers.
CCC-CERT
Facilities carrying the CCC-CERT logo have been inspected to verify that they follow Good Manufacturing Practices proven to minimize cross-contamination, infestation, and the presence of foreign material. CCC-CERT inspections are carried out by industry experts using criteria specifically tailored to the nut and agricultural industry. Shippers that pass inspection are given the CCC-CERT and entered into our data base.
CONCERNTRAK
The CONCERNTRAK system documents that product sold with the CCC-CERT comes from certified facilities. Each case is stamped with a tamper proof label that includes a tracking number, lot code, and production date, and is traceable back to the supplying facility.
PERFORMANCETRAK
The PERFORMANCETRAK component uses the tracking and certification data, combined with reporting from roasters and importers, to create a performance history for each supplier. This summary data will be accessible online to subscribers and can be used to compare shipper quality. PERFORMANCETRAK empowers buyers by providing the data they need in order to make informed purchasing decisions.
Contact Us: We invite your comments, suggestions and questions regarding the program. Please contact David Rosenthal or Mary Smith at 804-745-2848 / info@cashewconcern.com .
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