“Guns or butter” is a phrase used to describe the governmental challenge of funding defense and domestic programs simultaneously. At times, food manufacturers may feel they face a similar decision, when deciding whether to fund quality assurance initiatives, or to let money fall straight to the bottom line. A new initiative by the National Food Processors Association (NFPA), Washington D.C., permits the objectives of both product quality and cost savings to be reached.
The purpose of the Supplier Audits for Food Excellence (SAFE) program is, as its name suggests, a plan to audit suppliers to food manufacturing and distributing companies. Designed with the help of more than two-dozen member companies of the NFPA, the program utilizes trained and certified third-party auditors who are guided by a comprehensive audit checklist. This method is accepted by an ever-increasing number of major food companies. “The promise of fewer audits is a major advantage,” states NFPA's Rich Salotto, who directs the new program. “The days of multiple, duplicative audits are numbered.”