Dive Brief:
- General Mills raised its spending on food safety to $16 million in 2016, an increase of $3 million from 2015, according to Food Business News.
- In its 2017 Global Responsibility Report, the company said 8% of its essential capital investment last year was directed toward projects related to food safety.
- General Mills is trying to achieve Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) certification for its company-owned facilities by 2020.
Dive Insight:
General Mills increase in food safety spending is appreciated by consumers who are tired of hearing about recalls and safety issues on the news. Last year, the company was faced with a major flour recall, which soured consumers. The food manufacturer has taken steps to be more transparent with customers while increasing its food safety initiatives company-wide.
General Mills also has increased training to support FSMA compliance and played a key role in providing industry perspective during FSMA’s development. Of course, it’s not the only company to do so, but it’s one of the leaders in getting its voice heard.
Last year, General Mills conducted Auditor Academy training sessions attended by 194 participants from 14 countries, helping to improve the company’s ability to identify and fix issues, as well as prevent food safety problems from occurring.
“Safety is a priority focus area for our company leadership and part of our culture,” General Mills noted in its recent safety report. “Leading with safety — both the safety of our employees in the workplace and the food they make — is one of the key operating principles that guides our work.”
Food companies are likely careful about talking publicly about their food safety issues, fearing that doing so could imply they weren't doing enough to be proactive to begin with. It also risks drawing attention away from their brands and the variety of new items they are doing to address consumer wants and needs. Still, food manufacturers could consider doing more things like General Mills to show consumers the steps they are taking while at the same time promoting their products.