“It was November 2024, and I was standing between the open doors of my refrigerator. Cold air drifted past me into the kitchen as I located the bag of baby carrots, purchased just a few days ago. Water had pooled along the bottom of the plastic bag, but the carrots at the top hadn’t dried out yet.
I saw that someone in my family had already opened the bag, presumably eaten some of them, and closed it up with a purple rubber band. My pulse quickened, and I opened up my phone to check the details of the just announced carrot recall. E. coli. I located the batch number. Not a match. Exhale. But do I throw them away, just in case?”
My colleague recently shared this experience with me, and it reinforced how deeply embedded trust is in the consumer experience, and how easy it is to break.
Everyday, you and I and billions of our fellow human beings rely on the global food industry to provide safe, high-quality products. Yet, food safety challenges, like this winter’s carrot recall here in the US, persist and evolve. Despite the industry's best efforts, gaps remain. Last year, US recalls from Salmonella, Listeria and E. coli jumped more than 40% according to a Public Interest Research Group report, and a 2024 poll showed that 28% of US consumers are not confident in the safety of their food supply.
The stakes are high—each lapse in safety can compromise consumer trust and brand reputation while causing significant public health consequences.
Food safety is more than a regulatory requirement; it is a fundamental human right. At Veeva Consumer Products, we believe in a world where food safety is seamless, proactive, and digitally enabled. We envision a future where food safety leaders have the tools to anticipate and address risks in real time, ensuring that every product meets the highest standards of excellence.
The Next Evolution of Food Safety: A Digital Revolution
The food and beverage (F&B) industry has embraced digital transformation in many aspects of its operations, but food safety management has lagged behind. Too many manufacturers still rely on paper-based checklists, disconnected spreadsheets, and manual processes that leave room for error.
The solution is clear: Food safety must undergo a fundamental digital transformation. Emerging technologies, including AI-driven analytics, automation, and real-time monitoring, are reshaping how food safety is managed. At the heart of this transformation is the ability to connect data, people, and processes into a unified digital ecosystem.
The Digital Imperative: Unlocking Flawless Food Safety
The road to flawless food safety is paved with digital innovation. A modern, cloud-based food safety system should:
- Automate Routine Processes – Reduce human error and free up food safety professionals to focus on strategic oversight rather than administrative tasks.
- Enable Real-Time Risk Monitoring – Leverage AI and predictive analytics to detect emerging risks and hazards before they escalate.
- Create a Unified Food Safety Platform – Integrate HACCP management, recall management, allergen control, and supplier verification into a single digital environment.
- Standardize and Structure Data – Ensure that food safety data is harmonized across facilities, reducing inconsistencies and improving decision-making.
- Enhance Collaboration Across the Value Chain – Break down silos between R&D, manufacturing, and quality teams, fostering real-time information sharing.
At Veeva, we are delivering this vision through our QualityOne food safety solution—a cloud-based platform built to help food and beverage manufacturers unify, streamline, and enhance their food safety processes. By transitioning from reactive to predictive food safety management, companies can reduce risks, increase transparency, and improve overall efficiency.
For example, Reckitt has partnered with Veeva in its digital quality transformation by consolidating and unifying quality processes across all functions and product lifecycle stages within a single global platform. Connecting their digital quality core with their platform ecosystem - from PLM, to ERP, to data lakes, and more – Reckitt can ensure uncompromising compliance and streamline operations to enhance brand trust and drive business performance.
Addressing Today’s Challenges, Preparing for Tomorrow’s Risks
The global food system is undergoing rapid change. New challenges, including climate-driven hazards and risks, supply chain disruptions, and workforce turnover, require innovative solutions. At the same time, the rise of plant-based proteins, alternative ingredients, and new food technologies introduces novel risks that must be managed with precision.
By embracing digital food safety solutions, companies can future-proof their operations against these evolving threats. Automated hazard assessment and risk detection, integrated compliance tracking, and AI-driven insights will empower food safety leaders to act swiftly, ensuring that their brands maintain the highest standards of safety and trust.
Moving from Compliance to Excellence
The digital transformation of food safety management should not be viewed as a compliance exercise—it's a competitive advantage. Companies that lead in food safety excellence set themselves apart in the market. Consumers today demand transparency, and brands that proactively demonstrate their commitment to safety and quality will earn greater loyalty and trust.
Digital transformation enables a new paradigm—one where food safety is no longer about reacting to issues but predicting and preventing them before they occur. By investing in a flawless food safety system, companies can ensure that safety is never compromised, efficiency is maximized, and innovation is seamlessly integrated into their operations.
The Time to Act Is Now
The food safety leaders of today have an unprecedented opportunity to redefine the future of food safety management. The technology exists, the need is clear, and the benefits are undeniable. By moving toward a digitally connected, predictive approach to food safety, the world’s largest food and beverage brands can protect consumers, enhance operational efficiency, and secure a sustainable competitive edge.
Veeva Consumer Products is committed to supporting food safety leaders like John and his team at Nestlé on this journey. If our vision of flawless food safety resonates with you, I invite you to contact me to explore how our solutions can help you achieve this transformation.
Let’s work together to ensure that food safety is never compromised, and that excellence becomes the standard—flawlessly, every time.
