Issue link: http://osercommunicationsgroup.uberflip.com/i/247165
22 Wednesday, May 15, 2013 ESI GROUP A TRUSTED DESIGNBUILDER FOR NEW CONSTRUCTION, EXPANSIONS, RENOVATIONS For more than 20 years, ESI Group has been trusted to serve customers ranging from local, regional, and national leaders in food manufacturing, processing and distribution. Since 1991, the company has satisfied more than 150 clients and are proud to share that more than 80 percent of our business is with repeat customers, like US Foods, Sysco, Reinhart FoodService, Joseph Campione, Land TNA North America (Cont'd. from p. 1) deliver simplicity, maximum flexibility and optimum performance, and enable manufacturers to achieve key efficiencies in production. tna's focus on innovation and continuous improvement has also ensured it can offer design and technical support across a broad number of food packaging sectors, including fresh and frozen produce, snacks, confectionery, and seafood. PSD: What products will tna be showcasing at United Fresh? SF: For this particular show, we will mainly focus on our packaging and distribution technology. Our latest packaging innovation, the tna robag® FXIS 3ci O'Frost, Organically Grown, Performance Food Group, United Natural Foods, Usinger's Sausage, etc. What ESI Group's customers say "After occupying our Business Review Center for several months I feel its time to give thanks and appreciation to ESI for all their hard work and expertise. Our project is an example of what can be is the world's first vertical form fill and seal (VFFS) rotary PE packaging system and the fastest of its kind. It offers efficiencies of up to 99 per cent of target output while reaching unrivalled speeds of 150bpm, allowing food manufacturers to more than double their productivity. Experts will also be on-stand to introduce the tna roflo® VM 3an innovative vibratory motion conveying system that rapidly yet gently transports delicate fruit and vegetables along the packaging line to minimise damage and optimise output. PSD: How did tna experience 2012? SF: 2012 was a very successful year for tna. We celebrated 30 years in business, expanded our team, opened new offices and extended our products and services. Produce Show Daily accomplished by a group of talented individuals." -Norm Engle, SyscoLos Angeles, Calif. "Once again the ESI team amazed me with timely design and construction management. Although the schedule was very aggressive, the ESI team performed all tasks on time. Over the last 29 years I've been employed here, ESI has been the top design-build company I've worked with who understands what its like to work in a process facility while in production." -Michael Wammack, Land O'FrostSearcy, Ark. While the global financial crisis proved to be a test for most businesses, for us it opened up a lot of new opportunities for mergers and acquisitions and enabled us to further broaden our product and customer base. As a result, we have been able to build on our existing strengths, as well as expand into new sectors, including fresh and frozen. PSD: What are the main trends of the industry? SF: One of the main trends driving packaging global growth is the demand for increased system integration. Thirty years ago customers would purchase each individual component directly from a supplier without worrying about how this would affect integration. Now, more THE IMPACT OF NEW FOOD SAFETY REGULATIONS TO THE FRESH-CUT INDUSTRY By David Gombas, Senior Vice President of Food Safety & Technology With the release of the proposed Produce Safety and PreventiveControls Rules, United Fresh has gathered experts and industry leaders into two working groups to lead a series of meetings and webinars to craft comments for the FDA. As the analysis advances, a clearer picture of how FSMA will be implemented is coming to light, and there may be a serious challenge ahead if the exemption for small operations (Tester Amendment) remains in the final rule. In the FSMA, the amendment creates an exemption for producers who sold an average of less than $500,000 worth of food to all buyers (calculated on the three years preceding the applicable year), and qualify as selling mostly to local customers. United Fresh opposed that exemption when the law was passed, and we are seriously concerned about that exemption in the rule. It's a big flaw in the law: pathogens pose an equal risk on large farms and small farms. Until the exemption allowed by the amendment is fixed, United believes that retail and foodservice buyers have a special role to play in enforcing the rules, with their responsibility to ensure that their produce suppliers, large or small, are in full compliance with these food safety standards. It is in all of our best interests to promote a consistent food safety standard with no exceptions. The fresh-cut community is paying special attention to the Preventive Controls Rule, which appears to be far less prescriptive than anticipated. It does not require universal written food safety plans or Listeria testing and includes extensive exclusions that will affect small produce operations. For those not exempt, a written recall plan is required. Another industry concern regarding implementation is the cost, and it is a DRISCOLL'S GOES DIGITAL TO ENGAGE TODAY'S BERRY CONSUMERS With the explosion of digital platforms and social media networks, it's no surprise that brands are changing the way they connect with consumers. A recent Nielson report indicates that social networks account for nearly a quarter of the total time spent on the Internet. In fact, Americans spend more time on Facebook than they do on any other U.S. website. Social and other digital platforms are demonstrating the shift of power from marketer to consumer – empowering customers to be instantly highly visible and vocal. As the leading consumer brand for fresh berries, Driscoll's is embracing these new channels and has a thriving digital community of berry lovers across the number that will be extremely difficult to predict. United Fresh members already make significant investments in food safety processes and good agricultural practices that address the specific risks identified in the FDA proposal, which are essential costs of delivering safe, healthy products. United has a long history of supporting robust funding for the FDA to handle the associated administrative costs of FSMA. Once in final form, the rules will set an important roadmap for enforcement, which we expect will come with FDA working with the USDA, state departments of agriculture and private sector organizations to ensure that all producers are meeting the standards. We fully expect the industry to stringently follow the final rules, and to encourage colleagues to comply. How we collectively drive awareness and the need for compliance throughout the industry will shape enforcement of this landmark food safety world. Facebook fans stretch from the United States to the U.K. and to Portugal, Australia and Asia. On Twitter, it's not uncommon to see tweets with berry photos from London and Netherlands. Regardless of the channel, the message and conversation remains constant – berry fans are enjoying the taste of Driscoll's premium berries and are always interested in the nutritional benefits berries can provide and new recipes. Last September, Driscoll's partnered with Katie Workman, cookbook author of "Mom 100," to provide social media fans "It goes without saying that our new distribution center is amazing. Finally, we have a facility where we can work professionally and productively and take our business to a new level. We couldn't have done this without ESI's commitment and support. I cannot tell you how grateful we are that you stood behind us, took up the challenge, and helped us get where we are today." -John Szurek, US FoodsAlbuquerque, N.M. For more information, visit booth 1311 at United Fresh or go online to www.esigroupusa.com. processes, such as purchasing, installations and maintenance, are being handled externally. By outsourcing all equipment services to one total solutions provider, like tna, operators do not have to employ their own engineers and can be sure that each of their processes, and overall integration, is dealt with by an expert. Another visible development is the trend towards single-serve packaging. For many fresh produce retailers, these packs are a lot easier to display and they can take advantage of the visual appeal of fresh produce, while responding to consumer demand for more convenience. For more information, visit booth 1408 at United Fresh or go online to www.tnasolutions.com. initiative. There is plenty of work to be done to refine the proposals to final rule form. United has organized two working groups, one for each rule, which have begun a deliberative process to review the more than 1,000 pages total for both proposals. The working groups are comprised of United's volunteer leaders, representing a broad spectrum and expertise of the produce industry. Each of these panels is conducting a thorough analysis of the proposed FDA rules over a series of meetings, webinars and other events. Comments generated by the working groups and the broader membership will be compiled and approved by United's Board of Directors before being submitted to FDA prior to the close of the comment period set by FDA for both proposed rules. United Fresh will continue to advocate on behalf of the industry with comments on the long-awaited proposed Produce Safety and Preventive Controls for Human Foods rules and, serve as a resource throughout the process and beyond. healthy back-to-school berry ideas and recipes. From recipes posted on Facebook to a Twitter chat, Driscoll's created fun integrated content for all platforms. Driscoll's is also creating content to engage users of Pinterest and Instagram. Emerging platforms and rapidly changing technology will keep brands and companies on their toes in new ways to engage their consumers. For more information, check out www.driscolls.com/healthy/raspberries.