GMP to Play Key Role in Worldwide Food Industry Standards
GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) is set to play a key role in driving best practice quality and safety standards across the food industry worldwide over the coming years, says Eyre Tarrant, Director and Head of Food Sector at PM Group, a global leader in food engineering design and project management.

Food industry GMP

Product quality and food safety are two of the core values upon which every successful food manufacturing business is based. The high price of failing to deliver consistently on these values has been all too apparent over the past few years with well-publicised product recalls in the US and Europe costing tens of millions of dollars in lost revenue and causing immeasurable damage to the reputation of the brands involved. Despite the enforcement of numerous quality and food safety regulations, however, the potential for in-factory contamination and non-conformance is now greater than ever. As consumer tastes continue to evolve and products become more sophisticated, the processes and conditions required to guarantee consistent quality throughout the production lifecycle and beyond have become increasingly complex. Newer threats such as on-shelf product tampering and bioterrorism have merely served to compound the problem.

GMP

The holistic implementation of GMP - from initial intake of raw materials through the various processes and unit operations right through to the logistics chain - is the most cost-effective means of guaranteeing product quality and safety for food manufacturers. GMP combines the stringent best practice standards of high-end hygienic factory design with the latest lean manufacturing methodologies and has been successfully implemented by PM Group on a wide range of bespoke green and brown field projects for some of the world’s leading food producers over the past two decades.

“Changing consumer tastes, particularly the trend towards fresh, wholesome value-added produce, pose a significant ongoing challenge for producers who are under constant pressure to develop new products to meet demand. Many of these products are both time and temperature-sensitive and any quality or safety non-conformances, particularly in areas such as infant nutrition or products boasting health-enhancing benefits, could potentially prove disastrous for manufacturers. GMP can play a key role in preventing potential non-conformance issues by ensuring that all processes meet the latest best practice standards.” Eyre Tarrant, Director and head of the specialist Food Sector at PM Group, points out.

GMP goes beyond current legislative requirements to facilitate consistent full lifecycle risk awareness and best practice for both green and brown field operations, according to Eyre. It is also particularly applicable to new product development. “GMP encompasses all issues associated with the plant itself, including process equipment and factory personnel. It facilitates management in instilling a high level quality and food safety culture throughout the entire organisation which is vital in guarding against non-conformance in today’s increasingly complex production environment,” he adds. “In addition to improving product quality and safety, GMP will also significantly enhance plant efficiency, flexibility and sustainability, thereby helping to reduce ongoing operating and maintenance costs.”

GMP

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