Raw materials (ingredients, processing aids, and packaging materials) are the foundation of finished food products. As such, they must meet regulatory requirements (safe and legal for your intended use) and your specifications (contribute to the functionality and quality of your process and product).
Part1
Historically, research and development worked alone when selecting a new raw material. But now a broad team of expertise is needed, due to increased access to unique and complex materials, global sourcing, handling methods, customer locations, and regulations. The team assesses if the material has limitations or may be too costly to handle, and determines if additional measures are necessary to prevent potential safety issues for the employees and product.
Traditional Roles
A description of team responsibilities helps in the understanding of the diverse expertise needed to identify key raw material characteristics.
- Research and Development (R&D) – Invents the finished product to meet the customer’s expectations.
- Quality – Ensures that the programs and practices will result in finished product that is safe, is legal, and meets the company standards as well as specifications outlined by R&D.
- Production (from receiving to shipping) – Handles the raw materials and in-process and finished product in an appropriate manner (including equipment capability) to ensure the finished product is safe, is legal, and meets R&D’s specifications.
- Sales – Works with R&D and the customer to define and negotiate an acceptable product with an affiliated price point.
Each area’s expertise is necessary to determine the desired specifications for each raw material.
Raw Material Selection
R&D selects the appropriate raw materials based on functionality. Functionality can encompass multiple areas, such as providing identified characteristics of the finished product (binders, thickeners, type of resin for plastic packaging, etc.), organoleptic characteristics (flavor, color, aroma, texture), product safety characteristics (to lower the pH or water activity), and preservatives (extension of shelf life, color, or flavor retention, etc.).
Considerations in Selection
Is there a raw material already in use that has the same or similar characteristics?
If so: Don’t add unnecessary complexity.
Resource: List of existing approved materials and their specifications.
Is this a raw agricultural item, commodity item, or one that has a standard of identity?
If so: Develop a general specification that can be used between multiple potential suppliers.
Resources: Supplier technical information, the standard of identity, food action defect level from regulations, comparison of different suppliers’ specifications from the Internet.
What are the limitations on the use of the raw material?
- No limits or qualifications, such as the Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) listing in the United States.
- Use has been limited to specific products.
- Limitations or ban on the use, such as genetically modified materials for organic products.
Resources: Supplier technical information, regulations for the country of sale, e.g., U.S. Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Canadian Food Inspection Agency, European Commission, etc.
Are there legal, maximum levels for use, both in the country of manufacture and the country of sale/use?
Resources: Same as previous.
Does the raw material meet existing company or customer standards (e.g., kosher, halal, organic, gluten-free)?
Resources: Company standards, customer requirements, supplier technical information, supplier-provided certificates.
Plant Discussions and Trials
Trials require close collaboration between R&D and the manufacturing team. These examples of questions to be answered and the method for initiating discussions before, during, and after the trials will help facilitate the trial process.
OSHA Considerations
- Does the new material present a potential safety or handling concern to the employees or the facility (such as a flammable material or an irritating powder that needs venting)?
- Are there additional reporting requirements?
Food Defense Considerations
- Are there potential toxic levels of the raw material? If so, how is potential purposeful abuse handled?
Product Safety Considerations
- Find historic information about the material via search engines (e.g., “pathogen + name of the material”; “recall + name of the material”; “foodborne illness + name of the materials”)
- The food safety team assesses the potential biological, chemical, and physical hazards affiliated with the raw material (HACCP/HARPC review) as well as affiliated prerequisite programs and downstream prevention/elimination/reduction steps for identified hazards.
- Determine if existing product safety measures are circumnavigated (e.g., the particle size is too large for the existing sifters or metalized packaging passing through a downstream metal detector).
- Are additional processing steps necessary (e.g., an invert and clean if glass containers are the new material being used)?
- Do new programs or procedures need to be developed (e.g., an allergen program and/or validation that the existing change-over procedures are effective in removing a different allergen)?
Facility and Equipment Capabilities
- Can the plant appropriately handle the material (e.g., is sufficient storage capacity and special equipment or preparation available)?
- Is the existing equipment capable of handling the material (e.g.,granulation is too large for the dispenser)?
Material and Production Costs
- Are there additional costs associated with the material, such as holding for COA review and/or in-house testing, additional labor, decreased line flexibility, increased time for changeovers, increased lead time prior to use (such as thawing, hydration and mixing, etc.)?
- Will additional rotation controls be necessary for short shelf-life materials and will there be additional costs affiliated with more frequent delivery?
Post-Trial Discussions
Flexibility in sourcing and cost
- Is the material a commodity-type item that can be purchased from multiple sources? If so, compare existing specifications from multiple suppliers; allow comparison bidding/purchasing.
- Can the tolerances for characteristics be expanded to be able to purchase from more than one source or a wider range of possible, existing materials (such as granulation size for materials that are going to be dissolved or melted)?
- Can purchasing find a similar functionality material that costs less or has fewer concerns?
Size and type of packaging based on forecast use
Typically, the larger the container purchased, the cheaper the cost-per-pound. However, if the forecast is for use of 100 pounds in a year, what is the appropriate-sized container to purchase? It would not make sense to purchase in 50 pound bags (multiple handlings of the package with resulting potential of damage or contamination) or in a Super-Sak (with destruction of, or potential use of, expired materials).
In part 2 we look at Raw Materials, the Certificate of Acceptability and Validation and Verification.
About the Author
Robin Amsbury is a HACCP Coordinator, AIB.
This article was first published in Quality and Assurance Magazine, and is reproduced with permission.
http://www.qualityassurancemag.com/article/aib0613-raw-materials-requirements/
