Why FSMA?

Here’s a (not very) shocking confession: Like most of the CEOs I know and interact with, I’m not a huge fan of government regulation. The reasons are fairly obvious. As a group, business leaders place a high value on flexibility, efficiency, and the freedom to innovate, and the restrictive bureaucracy and slow pace of today’s regulatory environment can create some fairly brisk competitive headwinds. When we’re forced to deal with those headwinds over and over again, it’s all too easy to fall into that familiar “government is the problem” mindset.

However, when we collectively take a step back, it’s not that difficult for even the most laissez-faire and individualistic business leaders among us to see the other side of the regulations coin. Because in addition to running businesses, we’re all people with lives and families who recognize the value of a society where we can consistently count on the quality and safety of the food and water we consume, whether it’s buying produce at the grocery store or enjoying a meal at a local restaurant.

And of course, if you run a food manufacturing or food service business, you simply can’t ignore the often irreparable damage that even one food safety incident can inflict on your brand and reputation.  Recent headlines are filled with cautionary tales that none of us can afford to ignore. Images of CEOs appearing before various congressional committees, struggling to answer questions about foodborne illness outbreaks at their companies, have kept many of us up at night. And if they haven’t, they probably should.

Understand

That leads us to the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), which represents perhaps the largest and most sweeping reforms to food safety regulations since before World War II. Given all of the complex tensions between our legitimate impulses to avoid the costs and burdens of regulation, our basic human desire for safe food and water, and the tremendously damaging impact foodborne illnesses can have on our businesses, how should smart CEOs approach and prioritize FSMA? Should we dismiss it as another case of “government overreach” and work to minimize its impact in our organizations? Or does it make better business sense to fully embrace FSMA—and use it as a tool to confront and eliminate the potentially disastrous consequences of poor food safety?

To find the best answers to these questions, it’s important to explore some of the core motivations behind FSMA and understand what it’s designed to accomplish. In many ways, FSMA was born from a shared recognition among food industry leaders, the FDA, and consumers that—given the nearly 48 million cases of foodborne illnesses in the United States each year—it was high time to make major changes to food safety practices on a national scale. This led to a collaborative effort among the food industry, consumer groups, and the government to rethink and modernize food safety practices, and this work eventually coalesced into a basic outline for the final FSMA legislation.

Prioritize

Unlike previous food safety legislation, FSMA focuses on using rigorous Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points to proactively identify and eliminate risks before problems occur—rather than reacting to issues and outbreaks after the fact. This includes new standards for testing and manufacturing processes, mandatory registration and reporting, and other requirements. Although it may be tempting for CEOs and boards of directors to view these additional rules as government-imposed burdens, I believe FSMA—with its proactive, preventative approach—actually creates interesting opportunities for smart business leaders. By understanding, embracing, and prioritizing FSMA, you can avoid food safety problems and prevent outbreaks before they damage your business and reputation, rather than scrambling to repair the damage after it’s too late. And with FSMA, you embed food safety practices and protocols into the heart of your organization, which translates directly into a safer, more sustainable food system.

Embrace

One final note. FSMA compliance certainly isn’t easy. But with the right approach, it is possible to meet FSMA requirements and take advantage of the legitimate business benefits it offers without slowing your business down or sending operational costs through the roof.  We have plenty of experts at RizePoint who would love to share their ideas—whether it’s integrating Hazard Analysis and Preventative Controls into your food safety plan or leveraging today’s latest cloud and mobile technology to streamline how you monitor, audit, and document your FSMA compliance efforts.

In the final analysis, no CEO in his or her right mind—including me—is a fan of gratuitous, burdensome regulations. But in the case of FSMA, the benefits for business leaders clearly outweigh the costs—especially if you develop a smart, efficient path to compliance. It’s time for business leaders in the food industry to get invested in FSMA and take advantage of the opportunities it provides. Because this is one case where playing by the rules is also very good for business.