So how should a food processor select a laboratory to support their operations? The answer is not and should not be “pick one off the Internet or out of the telephone book.” This series of articles suggests what you should look for in a contract laboratory. In part 3 we discuss what you should look out for as warning signs that a lab will not be the correct choice.
Things to watch out for
There are several issues that companies may want to consider when evaluating contract laboratories. These issues mostly pertain to interactions between a laboratory and processor but may affect actual performance.
Factory mentality
As companies offering contract laboratory services have grown, they have tried to become more efficient and have adopted what might be called an assembly-line approach or factory mentality. Samples go into the queue, get processed by one of the technicians and signed off by a manager. This is efficient but does not create any ownership of the project. Everything is a number, not your sample. Smaller laboratories often offer more personal service, but their costs may be higher.
Another issue with the factory approach is that sometimes the “rapid technique” may not be applicable to a specific product. A client with whom I once worked had never had a product go out of specification until they switched laboratories. As soon as they switched, they began getting reports of high counts. The only change to operations was the switch to the new laboratory. It turned out that the laboratory was using a rapid method that simply did not work for that particular product. They had failed to validate the efficacy of the new testing protocol against the old.
Too diverse
Another issue is that many laboratories want to be all things to all people. They want to do all types of testing, offer consulting services, do training and perform other services. Sometimes these operations bite off more than they can chew. They simply don’t do everything well. One question that should be asked of a potential contractor is whether they do all the work themselves. Many operations say they can do certain tests, but what they are doing is subcontracting them out to another laboratory. This increases costs, lengthens turnaround times, and, as a customer, one never knows how the product was actually handled and tested. If specific tests are needed, find a laboratory that does that work; don’t have work subcontracted.
Customer service
The biggest issue is customer service. Will the laboratory meet your needs and are you both comfortable with them and confident in their expertise?
Summary
Finally, almost all processors are subjected to some form of third-party audit. The audits and auditors would not be doing their jobs if they did not include contract laboratories and how they are selected and managed in the audit. These operations should be your partners in quality and safety, so look for the best—a process that begins with tough selection criteria.
Article reproduced with permission from Food Safety Magazine
Source: Food Safety Magazine
Are your contract labs on your list of outsourced processors? Do you have procedures for controlling them and records to show this?
