Food safety is not just a regulatory requirement; it is an investment that significantly impacts the long-term success and sustainability of businesses across various industries. By enhancing food safety measures, businesses can improve product quality, build consumer trust, and reduce risks associated with recalls, import restrictions, and more. Below, we explore why food safety is essential for both food and feed industries and how it can lead to greater customer acceptance, higher demand, and increased product value.
Why Invest in Food Safety?
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Improve Brand Quality (Voronenko, 2022)
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Raise Customer Trust in Products (Suhaimi et al., 2024)
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Reduce Risks of Recalls (Gomez et al., 2020)
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Reduce Risk of Import Restriction (FSSI standard regulation)
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Meet the Growing Demand for Healthier Products (Khanal, 2023)
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Higher Product Value and Customer Acceptance of Higher Prices (Ghazanfari, 2024)
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Increase Business Growth and Customer Loyalty (Bouranta, 2019)
The comparison of pricing and customer acceptance of organic vs. non-organic products and acceptance of higher prices are driven by trust in product quality reduced risk of exposure to residues in food products and assuming lower health risks by consumption of those products.
The Impact of Food Safety on Global Industries
As life standards rise in certain global regions, there is an increasing awareness and acceptance of the demand for healthier products among consumers. To build long-term trust with customers, it is crucial to prevent negative impacts on brand reputation through proactive measures and actions.
This reflection extends beyond the food industry and also applies to the feed industry, where issues such as reduced performance, increased veterinary costs, loss of productivity, and the use of feed additives highlight the importance of food and feed safety. Industries including baby food, snacks, cereals, beverages, nuts, bakery products, coffee, tea, and dairy are all affected. Awareness and implementation of product quality go beyond just flavour, colour, and packaging. Food safety has become a global business priority—neglecting it can lead to decreased product acceptance while embracing it can elevate products to the top.
In chemical food safety, residues and contaminants are the major concerns. The implementation of food safety measures in the food production chain begins with testing ingredients and ends with a thorough product quality check. The speed of analysis and the reliability, as well as sensitivity (not only in the baby food industry), allow fast counteraction to prevent a decrease in product quality. As mycotoxins are regulated by law, the analysis is crucial and the money worth to be kept not only as a cost factor in the equation but also in the commitment to higher product quality and food safety to protect and support customer demands.
The Need for Comprehensive Food Safety Measures
Investment in food safety affects brand acceptance, claiming premium value and customer acceptance of impact on product prices indicates the request for increased food safety demands from the customer site. This is supported by demographics and studies in various countries, indicating that in general customers show higher trust and loyalty to products which are investigated regarding food safety issues than those which came more often in focus due to food safety recalls or exceedance of regulatory limits.
This all indicates the necessity of testing and food safety control mechanisms initiated by food-producing companies. Organic food only shows and is certified regarding the usage of pesticides and other residues, whereas the compliance for contaminants e.g. mycotoxins are necessarily screened during food production and by official food safety inspectors. The relationship between organic food, absence of residues and prevalence of contaminants is still under investigation and the compliance regarding contaminants like mycotoxins, which impact human and animal health, demands testing and food safety control strategies in food and feed production.
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