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Maintaining the very highest standards of food quality and safety is a core value of IFM member companies. Without these rigorous standards they could not have achieved the high level of consumer confidence and strong brand recognition they have built up over the years.
Quality control and safety procedures
Throughout the entire process of manufacturing and marketing foods for infants and young children, IFM member companies apply numerous procedures to protect the consumer’s safety. They incorporate innovative technological advances, follow responsible sales practices and work with governments and other bodies to improve regulatory frameworks.
IFM member companies possess state-of-the-art laboratories, facilities and systems. Manufacturers exercise stringent quality and food safety controls at every stage. They closely monitor suppliers’ products and practices to ensure they comply with quality standards and environmental guidelines, regularly consult leading toxicologists and microbiologists and apply procedures to analyse food-borne hazards and identify potential risks.
From the development stage to the final product, manufacturers ensure that strict hygiene standards are maintained. Quality assurance systems such as HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point) are applied to prevent product contamination. As a further safety measure, efficient recall procedures ensure that substandard products do not reach the consumer.
Laboratories, factories and distribution centres undergo regular audits to ensure that consistent quality and safety levels are maintained. The quality of the end product depends of course on precisely controlling what goes into it. Working in close cooperation with suppliers, manufacturers apply procedures to trace product ingredients throughout the manufacturing process, up to the point where finished products are ready for shipment to retailers.
Quality and safety criteria also extend to product labelling. IFM member companies ensure consumers are provided with all the information they need. In accordance with applicable legislation, their infant food labels identify the manufacturer and specify the composition and weight of the product, its nutritional value and the methods of storage and preparation.
Because of consumer sensitivity and general concern for safety, infant food production has always been the most strictly regulated sector of the food industry. Governments have developed extensive legislation to cover every aspect of foods for infants and young children. National legislation is often based on or refers to the Codex Alimentarius standard.
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