Choices

Many of our customers have asked us the question: what types of perishables should I monitor, and what types of monitoring tools should I use?  Our experience in the industry allows us to make some useful conclusions on this issue, and to offer recommendations.  We present this analysis here to illustrate that Vitsab® is a key element in an effective time-temperature management scheme. These recommendations are based on extensive experience in consulting with shippers and receivers in food perishable distribution, processing and retail industries.

In-Store T-T Management

In-store maintenance depends upon a plan of measurement of the efficiency of storage temperatures combined with a program of monitoring of stored perishables using TTI labels to use temperature history as the most important factor. Management decisions from data are of three types: Early detection of equipment or display problems that are outside the envelope of good storage conditions—corrective action. New: CheckPoint® III - Type EJ Monitoring of Deli Case Items   Effective stock rotation of critical perishables based on dynamic expiration dates determined by TTI labels. Essential:  CheckPoint® Time/Temperature Labels, where indicated Systematic data collection system for larger operations (chains, large processors) In the case of data type 1 and 2, the action criterion is local, since actions are immediate and not deferrable.  In the case of data type 3, alert functions can trigger immediate and local action.  Data on TTI performance should be recorded in some way that allows archiving of results. It is not usually possible or efficient to do this on a regular basis. Central gathering of data on TTI performance requires linking the data to a standardized regime, so that it is done along with quantitative measurement reporting, rather than on a separate basis.