Each company has its own methods when it comes to taking samples for laboratory analysis. What is common to all participating companies is that they are multinationals with offices around the world. "Firstly, the companies introduce data about a sample into the system," explains Bettina Hundt, of ChainPoint, which was the company commissioned to develop Fresh.Point. Afterwards, a laboratory is instructed to examine the sample. The laboratory technicians feed the data into the system, so it is immediately clear whether there is an exceedance.
A print screen of a map generated by the software. (data is fake)
Retail standards
Besides making it clear whether a product meets the legal standards for MRLs, the laboratory can also specify whether the additional requirements of the retailers are met. "It is possible for a batch to meet the statutory standards, but not the standards of the supermarket," explains Bettina. And the additional requirements from retailers will also vary. For example, Aldi’s standard may be different to Edeka’s.
What this involves is a fairly technical issue and is basically a mathematical problem. Given that there is a sample, the survey has a margin of error. After all, it is possible that the results apply only to the sample and not to the whole batch. The legal error margin is quite wide. Bettina estimates that "if the standard amounts, for example, to 1 microgram per kilo and you have a margin of error of 50 percent, a product reaching 1.50 micrograms per kilo will fall within the margin." For supermarkets, that is actually not enough, as they want certainty about their safety. Consequently, when they set their standards below the legal maximum, "they are only making sure that they will remain under the legal standard in all cases”.
Anonymous data
Besides the fact that the system speeds up the process and facilitates the connection between the company and the laboratories, all results remain in the system. This has an advantage; the data can be analysed. "A company might then find that many of the inspected apples contained excessive MRLs," explains Bettina. "Most products have very low MRLs, so those exceeding the set standards are an exception to the norm, but such exceedances are easily visible in the system." The data can be broken down by country of origin, so it is theoretically possible to conclude that grapes from one country infringe the norm less often than the grapes from another country. Based on such data, a trader may adjust its imports.
"Each company remains the owner of the data," continues Bettina. Only the German Fruit Trade Association has access to anonymised data. "They are given an insight into products with a high risk, but cannot be told to which company do the results correspond to." With an addition to the standard software, companies are also given a chance to carry out analyses of the results, so the data can be visually displayed on a world map.
New applications
Although only a small number of firms took the initiative of introducing the platform, the number of companies working with Fresh.Point continues to increase. "A new company has joined in just this week," states Bettina on week 51. At Fruit Logistica, contacts are sought with more companies. Furthermore, the software is still being expanded. It is now also possible to input the data offline using the new Fresh.Point App that will be presented at the Fruit Logistica in Berlin. Then, as soon as the device on which the data are entered connects to the Internet, the data is put into the system.
"We have also set the system up in such a way that the quality manager does not physically need to be close to the product. For example, he can give the order from Germany to take a sample from a container in Rotterdam," explains Bettina. "Then someone in Rotterdam inputs the data and sends them to the laboratory." (RM)
More information:
Chainpoint
Bettina Hundt
b.hundt@chainpoint.com
www.chainpoint.com
www.freshpoint.nu