More packaging inspection for food safety is a ‘no brainer’

When it comes to food safety, are companies doing enough? Nearly 80% of the people who responded to a recent Packaging Digest online poll say food and beverage manufacturers need to add more inspection on their packaging lines to help ensure product safety.

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“Cost per pack inspected is low. Cost per recall prevented is high. It’s a no-brainer!” says one respondent.

“Better there than to try to catch a problem later on,” says another.

Another participant poses, “I don't think you can have enough safety when it comes to ingested products.”

How companies communicate to consumers the care they take regarding product safety needs an overhaul, too, according to this poll taker: “Consumers want more. No one wants to call an 800 number and listen to a recording for 45 minutes. We want instant gratification. If I can scan a QR [quick response] code and answer my question in 30 seconds from anywhere I can get cell service, I am all for it!”

The value of online packaging inspection extends beyond safety to other benefits, such as ensuring product quality, which is explicitly linked to safety.

“It would give more assurance that finished goods would comply to the minimum requirements in terms of quality and safety,” says one respondent.

Another one counsels, “Child resistance and food safety are just two examples that can rely heavily on quality manufacture of the package to function safely.”

Of the few respondents who took the contrary position that food and beverage companies don’t need more online packaging inspection, this one explains why he/she choose this answer: “Problem is not doing something when they find poor quality.”

And this participant points to the costly dangers of not ensuring safety:  “Because it is so easy to lose your client's trust and your market share.”

The upside? “Recalls due to mis-labelings could be minimized.”

Online packaging inspection equipment varies from vision sensors to metal detectors and x-ray systems. Click here to search for suppliers exhibiting inspection solutions at the upcoming WestPack show (Feb. 10-12; Anaheim, CA).