Food safety at the forefront of new CDO plant

MANILA, Philippines -  CDO Foodsphere Inc. has made significant investments in food safety, which is at the forefront of its new food manufacturing plant in Malvar, Batangas that opened last June 26.

Jerome Ong, president of the top meat processing firm, said the modern manufacturing plant will set the bar higher for occupational safety, food safety and product quality not only in Batangas, but also in the whole country.

During the plant’s inauguration, National Meat Inspection Service executive director Jane Bacayo awarded to Ong the certificate of accreditation of the CDO plant in Malvar town as an “AAA” meat processing plant. This means that the new facility is one of the best in the country in terms of manufacturing and processing.

The Batangas plant is capable of producing 150,000 kilos of different processed meat products daily.

Madelyn Rejano, quality assurance manager of CDO-Foodsphere, said the company has made HACCP – or Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points – the cornerstone of its production approach since 2002 to produce fresh, hygienic and high-quality meat products.

HACCP is the scientific approach to address concerns on food safety. It is a scientific process developed to reduce to an acceptable level the so-called hazards or contaminants in critical areas of the food production and distribution process.

Its main objective is to prevent up to 100 percent the harmful contamination in the food supply. Compared to the traditional quality control inspection that is oftentimes corrective in nature, it is preventive in approach.

Through HACCP, Rejano said the hazards (physical, chemical, and biological, including allergens) are identified in all the steps in producing a safe product.

Aside from microorganisms, there is also a growing concern about physical and chemical contamination of food. Examples of these contaminants are metals (physical hazard), soap used in cleaning equipment (chemical hazard) and allergens from soya products, eggs, milk, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, peanut and wheat.

This is why HACCP is important to set in place control points in all steps of the food supply, from the raw state through processing and shipping to consumption by the consumer. These steps include but are not limited to transportation, receipt of materials, cooking, packaging, storage, and distribution.

Rejano said CDO-Foodsphere has adopted the HACCP system since 2002, taking the safety of its consumers as its primordial consideration.

All canned meat products of CDO are already HACCP-certified, including Karne Norte, Corned Beef, Meat Loaf, Beef Loaf, Chundisado, Samba Brazilian Corned Beef, Liver Spread, Luncheon Meat, Vienna Sausage, Beefio Luncheon Beef, Danes Cheese, Bingo Karne Norte, and all viand lines.