New whitepaper discusses allergen management and risk mitigation in food production and distribution.
Effective allergen management is one of the most critical concerns in the production and distribution of food items. In the 2017 version of ColumbusFood, our industry solution suite for Microsoft Dynamics NAV and AX, we introduce many enhancements and new features to augment the allergen management capabilities of earlier versions.
Consumers in harm’s way
If you have a food allergy or know someone who does, you may have experienced firsthand how dangerous it can be when the body’s immune system responds to a substance in food as a threat and musters its defenses. There is neither cure nor treatment for food allergies. You must avoid all foods that include the triggering element.
As pointed out in various articles in Food Safety Magazine and elsewhere over the years, the industry is still challenged in managing processes and educating employees, distributors, and consumers about the potential risks of allergens in products, ingredients, and facilities. According to experts writing and being interviewed in the magazine, one particularly dangerous aspect of food operations and allergen management is the poor visibility of allergen-related information about food ingredients and raw materials from one company to another in the supply chain. Many companies are also not very thorough or reliable when they document and define potential allergen risks to themselves and consumers. With Food Manufacturing and Distribution, we aim to help companies close many of the critical gaps in allergen management.
Stronger allergen management for Microsoft Dynamics NAV users
In earlier versions of Food Manufacturing and Distribution, you could already use such features as vendor certification to track which of your suppliers have implemented an allergen management plan, or item attributes to highlight the presence of allergens as you plan recipes and production.
In the newest version of the solution, we add such features as a table of allergens for uninterrupted tracking of individual allergens and allergen groups. You can increase the visibility of allergens in batch planning and other processes. The solution’s workflow function includes a pre-built call-to-action workflow to make sure that employees responsible for allergen management and control take the right actions at all times, no matter how busy they are.
The food industry team at Columbus can help you understand and plan for compliance with the allergen regulations in different countries. They may be similar, but vary greatly in the details of what they require from companies. And, if you would like to discuss allergen management or other features of Food Manufacturing and Distribution, or see a demo, please be sure to contact us.
