IFS Food implementation for a frozen food producer
We designed a room layout and worker flow consistent with the IFS standard. Thanks to this, the company could start exporting its products to Scandinavia.
A frozen vegetable producer from Greater Poland got stuck on the local market due to a lack of an IFS Food certificate. Without this document, foreign retail chains didn't even open the submitted price offers.
The challenge
The company operated in a hall from the 90s. The room layout caused dirty packaging to cross with the finished product. This disqualified the plant during technical audits. In April 2023, their offer for deliveries to Sweden was rejected because the level of raw material loss was 8.4%, and hygiene raised the auditors' doubts. The management knew that without changes the company would stop growing.
Our approach
We entered the plant in May 2023. First we did a hard inventory of the processes. We sent two consultants who spent 4 days on the hall, observing every movement of the workers. We changed the shift schedule and designated new paths for forklifts. We know the land and the numbers, so we didn't propose expensive technologies, just concrete changes in work organization.
The solution
We introduced physical separation of high and low risk zones. We installed 14 temperature sensors with digital data recording in the cold rooms. We trained 38 employees on real hygiene rules, and not just on signing attendance lists. We prepared full HACCP documentation, which was ready for inspection at any moment, and not just before the control.
Results
The plant passed the certification audit the first time with a very high score. Meridian Greater Poland made sure that every construction correction was consistent with the standard, which avoided penalties and corrections.
Timeline
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May 2023Zero audit and identification of 23 critical points in the hall layout.
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August 2023Reconstruction of sanitary locks and assembly of temperature monitoring.
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October 2023Training of production personnel on new machine washing procedures.
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December 2023Obtaining the certificate and signing the contract with the distributor from Oslo.
"We were skeptical because others promised golden mountains. Meridian Greater Poland simply walked onto the hall and showed where we were losing money. Thanks to them, we now export to Scandinavia without stress about the control results."