I think a lot about food safety data. I doubt that surprises anyone who knows me, and especially those who have known me in the past few years. I talk about it constantly, almost obsessively. But here’s the twist – I don’t only think about food safety data. Shocking, I know. But many people have first encountered me not as a food safety geek, but as an entrepreneur and business leader, a passionate builder of teams and multimillion-dollar product lines and businesses. In short, I am not just about food safety data.  

So why take the time to point out this distinction? Why write about it now? 

Because as I was (yes) thinking about food safety data recently, it occurred to me that somewhere along the way, food safety data diverged from the rest of our operational and business data. Maybe that separation was an intentional effort to give food safety the visibility and seriousness it deserves. Maybe it grew naturally as the food industry matured, and regulations emerged around an existing business infrastructure. Or, maybe, it simply just happened. 

Regardless of the origin, the result is the same – operational data and food safety data often live in different worlds. And, that separation is a missed opportunity – and an amazing chance to find unrealized value for innovation, new product/solution development and overall business optimization.  

That missed opportunity appeals and fuels my entrepreneurial passions and love for innovation and food safety optimization. 

Over the past decades, we have created a curated list of what qualifies as food safety data. For instance: microbial testing, pH measurements, temperature logs, sanitizer concentrations, training records, etc. We have binders and binders full of this type of data – all ready to be thumbed through and reviewed during audits and customer visits. 

So, here we stand on our mountain of data assembled and curated to tell a food safety story. But what might that story be telling, and how can we better use it?  

Herein lies the challenge with siloed, separate and limited food safety data. It is disconnected from the system it lives in. The true value and opportunity (both for food safety and business optimization) lie not in the measurements themselves, but the conditions and context surrounding it. The why, where, when and what else is happening at the same time.  

Chances are high that the answers and optimizations you are looking for to scale your businesses, find new businesses and identify new risk-reductions may already be sitting quietly on your servers, notebooks and within your operational KPIs (key performance indicators). The value is there – it’s an exciting time to unlock it.  

Western Growers’ data initiative is not just to improve food safety, but also to support the industry to grow and build innovative solutions, vet new markets and ultimately, unlock the unrealized value food safety data can offer us. Join us.