RKE Technical Bulletin – August 2021
National Food Safety Education Month September is National Food Safety Education Month. With an estimated 128,000 hospitalizations, and 3,000 deaths each year from eating contaminated food knowing how to prevent foodborne illness is important to professionals and consumers. There are many resources readily available for food safety education but not everyone may know about the […]
RKE Technical Bulletin – July 2021
Internal & External Feeders There are many species of insects classified as stored product (or grain) pests. Most of these are broken into “categories” as internal or external feeders. The principal pests that cause damage are the adult and larval stages of beetles, and the larval stage of moths. The names are self-explanatory, one feeds […]
RKE Technical Bulletin – June 2021
Sustainability Sustainability has become a mainstay in many vocabularies. It can be defined as “avoidance of the depletion of natural resources in order to maintain an ecological balance”, or “the ability to be maintained at a certain rate or level”, both apply to the food manufacturing industry. Whether it is sustaining agricultural commodities for raw […]
RKE Technical Bulletin – May 2021
Introduction to Mycotoxins Mycotoxins are a naturally occurring chemical hazard in many agricultural commodities. The toxins are produced by certain molds which can grow on certain foodstuffs, including common staples in most diets like cereals, nuts, spices, dried fruits, apples, and coffee beans, often under warm and humid conditions. Mycotoxins can cause a variety of […]
RKE Technical Bulletin – April 2021
Announced Vs. Unannounced Audits Audit ready all the time. Not too many things scream “a culture of food safety”, but unannounced audits are well on their way. Many, if not most, commercial food manufacturers and distribution centers voluntarily subscribe to third party audits such as those schemes benchmarked to the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) […]
RKE Technical Bulletin – March 2021
The 9th Big One For years, the food industry has heard rumbling that sesame was going to be the next allergen to join the “Big 8.” In many countries around the world, (EU, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Japan) sesame IS an allergen and is required to be on labels. It has been documented that […]
RKE Technical Bulletin – February 2021
Management Commitment In today’s fast-paced food manufacturing and distribution industries, a lot of scrutiny is placed on keeping the food supply safe. Many, if not most, distributors and manufacturers participate in third-party audit schemes, whether it be GMP, GDP, or GFSI audit schemes. None of these programs could be successful without management commitment. When senior […]
RKE Technical Bulletin – January 2021
Culture Shift We covered food safety culture in previous editions of this technical bulletin and the topic is still a hot one. With the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) pressing audit schemes to include requirements focused on building a culture of food safety within their organizations, it is time to discuss again. The “we’ll fix […]
RKE Technical Bulletin – December 2020
Holiday Food Safety Feasting with family is part of many holiday celebrations. Follow these simple tips to help prevent food poisoning, or foodborne illness, during the holidays. While COVID is restricting most big gatherings, the holiday feasts will still occur and aside form social distancing and wearing of masks, food safety practices need to be […]
RKE Technical Bulletin – November 2020
Virtual Food Safety Audits With today’s technology and current pandemic, the term “virtual” is used frequently, and is most likely here to stay, for a while, at least. The Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) has issued a lot of guidance on “virtual” or remote auditing. The intent is to maintain the integrity of the audit […]
