02 Oct 2024

Does your dry goods management system meet today’s challenges?

Reliable food processing software helps protect consumers and your brand

In today’s global supply chain, managing dry goods products effectively is more crucial than ever—and more challenging. With increasingly complex regulations, growing demands for transparency, and pressure on margins, it's essential to have the right tools in place. This article provides a useful overview of why effective dry goods management matters, what a software system should offer, and how Marel software can ensure traceability and enhance resource utilization for your company.

Why is it important to have effective dry goods management software?

Having a reliable dry goods management system helps you minimize food contamination risks, ensure compliance with regulations, maintain a good reputation, manage your inventory effectively, and provide transparency for consumers. Let’s take a closer look.

Ensuring consumer safety and preventing cross-contamination

As a food producer, your primary responsibility is to ensure that your products are clean and safe for consumption. This is no simple task, as the journey of any product is long and complex, with risks of physical, biological, and chemical contamination at nearly every stage.

For dry goods producers, effective inventory management is crucial to prevent cross-contamination between small, fine-textured, and loose ingredients like grains, nuts, dried fruits, crumbs, starches, spices, sugar, salt, and additives. Swift and accurate traceability is essential—the faster you can identify a problem, the quicker you can contain it.

Complying with food standards and regulations

Operating in the food processing industry means navigating a maze of regulations. Food safety authorities, such as the Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) in the US and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) in the EU, require transparency throughout the supply chain.

Complicating matters further, in a global market you need to comply not only with local laws but also with the laws of all other states and countries in your supply chain. Software can greatly simplify compliance, offering detailed traceability and ensuring your products meet all regulatory requirements.

Protecting and enhancing brand reputation

Consumer complaints and product recalls can significantly damage or even destroy your company’s reputation. This is especially true in the era of social media, where bad publicity spreads fast.

Fortunately, having the right traceability software offers protection against costly and damaging product recalls. With real-time data at your fingertips, you are far more likely to prevent issues or catch them early, so they don’t develop into large-scale problems.

Managing your inventory for maximum efficiency and profitability

Traceability is crucial to manage your products, time, and storage space as efficiently as possible. You need to know exactly where every item in your inventory came from, where it is now, how many you have, and when it expires.

By digitalizing and centralizing this information in an easily searchable system, you can enhance efficiency and ensure that you sell the right products at the optimal time. This approach helps minimize food waste and maximize profitability.

Increasing consumer demand for detailed product information

Today’s consumers want to know everything about their food—where it comes from, how it’s made, its nutritional value, potential allergens, and whether it aligns with personal values like religious beliefs and sustainability concerns.

Traceability software makes it easy to include detailed information on your packaging, so you can highlight your products’ origins, safety, and quality and ultimately build consumer trust.

How well does your dry goods management system meet these challenges?

To evaluate your current dry goods management system, consider these questions:

Does it offer precise control for storing and locating dry ingredients?
Does it reduce the risk of cross-contamination effectively?
Is it digitalized and ready for the future, or does it rely on paper records?
Can it quickly trace the source of all inputs, such as raw materials and additives?
Is it designed for the specific needs of dry goods management?
Does it ensure quality management and compliance with food safety regulations?
Can it make audits a smooth and efficient process?

If your current system falls short in these areas, Marel’s dry goods management software solution could greatly enhance your operations.

Marel software transforms dry goods management

Marel’s specialized software is designed specifically for managing dry goods, offering a tailored solution that goes beyond standard inventory management systems that primarily handle protein.

This comprehensive software streamlines your entire process, from receiving and packaging to labeling for traceability across multiple locations, while minimizing contamination risks and ensuring the highest safety standards.

By tracking ingredients in real-time, it ensures the right product reaches the right place at the right time. And by perfecting inventory management, it enhances efficiency and helps you maximize the value of your company’s time and resources.

Who benefits?

Marel software seamlessly integrates into your operations, providing valuable insights and a user-friendly experience for diverse roles within your team.

General Managers: Optimize processing, reduce costs, minimize labor, and protect your brand with automated processes and comprehensive reports.

Production Managers: Improve production quality, enhance food safety, reduce waste, and ensure timely deliveries with real-time status reports.

Quality Control Managers: Ensure compliance with food safety regulations and meet customer expectations efficiently.

Operators: Streamline labeling, improve efficiency, and save time by automating packing and inventory processes.

Are you ready to transform your dry goods management?

Whether you’re ready to streamline your operations or just want to learn more, our experts are here to help. Fill out the form below to learn how our software can transform your company’s dry goods management. Our specialists are eager to learn about your goals and challenges so we can support your success!