The Food Service Industry: 3 Things You Need to Know
The food service industry is one of the most sophisticated businesses which involves multiple strategies that determine if it’s going to succeed or fail. Here, we are going to shed some light and help you know what exactly awaits you if you decide to venture into the food industry.
1. The Food industry supply chain is very sophisticated
When you hear about the food business industry, maybe you think of a restaurant that prepares and sells food to consumers, and that’s all. Before the plate of your favorite food is placed on the table, a lot of players have been involved behind the scene to ensure you get what you ordered. To mention a few specialized players involved in the food industry:
· Food Brokers. These acts as a link between the manufacturer and stores. They sell goods on behalf of manufacturers.
· Wholesalers. They buy food products and manage the selling, storing, and delivering to individual consumers or retail distributors.
· Foodservice Representatives. They sell food products directly to restaurants but do not deliver the products physically.
· Wholesale foodservice representatives. Unlike Foodservice representatives, wholesalers buy, sell, and handles all logistics for delivering food products to restaurants.
2. Food safety regulation is a crucial issue
Food safety regulations affect all the participants in the food supply chain, from the farm to the manufacturer to the table. For anyone in the food industry, ensuring food safety and adhering to food safety laws should be regarded as the most paramount goal of any restaurant. Various food safety regulatory bodies work together to come up with standards that govern how food is handled, manufactured, and distributed.
Since food safety is a matter of concern across all the globe, different steps have been taking place to resolve this problem. These steps include cleaning and sanitizing surfaces and equipment, proper processing, and storage of food with regards to temperature, environment, and maintaining high levels of personal hygiene. Since food safety ensures that consumers are protected from physical, chemical, and biological hazards, any food industry must uphold food safety regulations without any room for failure.
3. Technology is transforming the Food Industry
When you mention food, technology isn’t always the first thing that comes to mind. But tech has over years changed every food industry process from production to ensuring food safety and many more. Technology will not only make your processes seamless but will improve your business’s chances to grow within this competitive foodservice industry. These technologies are currently impacting the foodservice industry:
· Mobile Apps. With only a smartphone, technology has revolutionized the ordering process, tracking of the supply chain, payments with just a click of a button.
· Internet of Things. With food safety on the line, many food businesses are utilizing sensors to monitor food conditions while in transit or stores.
Amicably, the food service industry extensively depends on the complicated supply chain, vital safety regulations, and sophisticated technology to ensure the food in front of the customer is safe.