The Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) was passed in 2011, expanding the FDA’s power to prevent foodborne illness.
New regulations allowed the FDA to perform mandatory recalls, establish relationships with third-party verification bodies, and access firm safety records, among many other powers.
Most importantly for food manufacturers, it mandated regular inspections of facilities for health and safety compliance.
Suzanne Kingsbury, Director of Quality
Navigating FSMA Food Safety Compliance
Audits of your processes are likely to include ingredients from upstream in your supply chain, even if those ingredients aren’t directly consumed.
For example, the white oils that are crucial to the food manufacturing industry must also comply with FSMA rules for food safety compliance.
Many suppliers in the industry nominally meet such requirements, but this does not necessarily reflect a deep commitment to ingredient quality and safety.
Here are some questions you can ask your white mineral oil supplier to determine how well they score on food safety compliance and where there might be room for improvement.
1. Do their certifications apply to the way products are handled?
While some suppliers have certifications that seem relevant to food safety, they are not applicable in all scenarios.
For example, they may have a certification for food safety compliance based on product handling at a particular facility. But when they bypass the certified facility and ship orders directly from refiners to clients using third parties, that certificate is worthless. When compliance is in the hands of others, they need to certify the actual process.
If materials are not handled properly, certifications based on proper handling won’t matter. Ask what techniques your supplier and their partners are using to ensure products remain pure, meet specifications, and maintain FSMA compliance.
FACT: Renkert Oil routinely uses production lines dedicated to one product only to ensure they are 100 percent free of contaminants. We are very selective in our choice of shipping partners and their handling processes.
2. Do they go the extra mile to help secure the entire supply chain?
Consider your white oil supplier’s relationships with other members of their supply chain, both up and downstream.
Their product’s purity and safety rely on the standards of the refiner they source it from, so it is important that they curate relationships with like-minded business partners. They must also share relevant information with purchasers to ensure proper handling of their product.
FACT: Renkert Oil offers a turnkey FSMA process to maintain product safety and compliance! We produce our white mineral oil line and process all NF/USP-grade products through our three facilities, then work closely with our customers to provide the training and instruction they need to maintain FSMA compliance once it’s in their hands.
3. What certifications do they have?
For example, many white oil suppliers will have the FSSC 22000 certification, based on ISO 22000 food manufacturing supply chain guidelines, or a similar certification ensuring FSMA compliance.
However, suppliers can set themselves apart by adhering to more stringent and/or more globally recognized standards for food safety. Ask your suppliers whether they are Safe Quality Food (SQF) certified. These requirements exceed those of the FSMA in areas such as
- Handling,
- Production,
- Storage, and
- Shipping of food and food-grade products.
FACT: Renkert Oil is the only white oil supplier in the U.S. to be certified USP Verified (a U.S. Pharmacopeia certified mark), another testament to our commitment to purity, safety, and quality.
Renkert Oil’s Staircase of Quality
USP Verified (TM) – United States Pharmacopeia Verified Mark; SQF – Safe Quality Foods Certified Quality System; NSF – National Sanitation Foundation Registered; FSMA – Food Safety Modernization Act Compliant; GMP – Good Manufacturing Practices
Renkert Oil: Your Food Safety Compliance Partner
Since the FSMA was passed, and the scope of the FDA’s power for intervention and oversight broadened, it has become more important than ever to maintain high standards for product quality and safety.
Working with a reliable white mineral oil supplier is paramount for food safety compliance. Renkert Oil is here for you!
We are an industry leader in promoting a high-quality, efficient supply chain, setting high standards beyond FSMA compliance, and helping our customers follow suit.
Improved Supply Security & Logistics
Renkert Oil has recently opened a new rapid-delivery packaging facility in the Chicago area! We now offer our white oil and process oil customers:
- Drums and totes (IBCs) with
- One-day (or even same-day) shipping,
- LTL (less than truckload) custom orders, and
- No minimum order size
This is just one node in our extensive network of bulk facilities stretching across the United States and Europe, which we use to respond to our customers’ needs quickly and flexibly, regardless of changing market conditions.
For more information about Renkert Oil’s commitment to food safety compliance, logistics, or the kinds of products we offer, reach out today!
