Navigating food safety and quality in an era of global challenges

Durum wheat, essential for pasta production, faces growing threats from climate change and mycotoxin contamination. Barilla has developed an advanced forecasting model to predict and mitigate these risks, ensuring safer, high-quality raw materials for consumers. Image credit: Shutterstock

The global environment has become increasingly turbulent in recent years, primarily due to climate change, escalating geopolitical tensions and economic instability. These challenges significantly impact food quality and safety management, making our work more complex. As food systems become more interconnected and regulatory frameworks evolve, the need for proactive and science-driven strategies is more pressing than ever. 

Supply-chain vulnerabilities and food fraud prevention 

Modern supply chains face mounting fragility due to diverse global risks. One critical rising challenge is food fraud, which in addition to undermining consumer trust, can mask serious food safety concerns and pose health risks to consumers.  

To assuage this hazard, Barilla has developed a specialised food fraud prevention system that helps identify potentially fraudulent activities before they escalate. This approach combines novel detection techniques – developed with testing providers and universities – with more traditional tools, such as audits and mass-balance. Some examples include innovative analysis that confirms the origin of ingredients, and specific markers analysis to prove the freshness of eggs, both of which are needed to produce bakery products and pasta. 

Moreover, the system leverages industry ‘insiders’, professionals who are highly experienced on particular manufacturing processes, that contribute their knowledge to identify possible vulnerable areas. 

A thorough risk assessment approach is implemented to define the exposure and ingredient categories’ priorities. This requires the analysis of several factors such as price volatility, the business-wise relevance of a material category, fraud alerts, intrinsic risk of the specific supply chain, alongside the intangible ‘feeling’ from experts’ intuition.   

By proactively addressing vulnerabilities, food companies can uphold consumer trust and ensure product integrity. 

Climate change and mycotoxin risk management 

Climate change plays a crucial role in exacerbating supply-chain fragility and increasing the likelihood of food safety hazards. On one side, rising temperatures and shifting weather patterns increase the risk of raw material shortages and hyperinflation, driving potential food safety issues. On the other side, they contribute to the spread of new pest species, that require specific monitoring and new tools. In addition, global warming leads to the proliferation of mycotoxins, secondary metabolites produced by fungi, that could contaminate crops, particularly cereals. 

To mitigate this risk, Barilla has pioneered an advanced forecasting model for mycotoxin contamination in durum wheat, used for pasta production. This predictive system, grounded in multiple climatological and agronomic data, enables early detection of potential contamination risks along the supply chain. It has been developed to classify the growing areas where wheat can be subjected to the fungal attacks that develop mycotoxins, including the main concern, deoxynivalenol. Thanks to this predictive system, it is possible to develop a granular and dynamic risk assessment, informing the frequency of the analytical controls that should be carried out prior to purchase.  

By leveraging real-time insights, this model enhances decision-making processes and helps to prevent food safety incidents before they occur. 

Regulatory landscape and horizon scanning for emerging risks 

Regulatory bodies worldwide are intensifying their efforts to establish food safety standards, yet harmonisation remains a challenge. Diverging regulatory approaches can create complexities for food producers operating on a global scale.  

A good example relates to allergen labelling, where the list of potential allergens on pack could differ between countries; in fact, the risk management by authorities differs significantly even within the EU. Thus, long-term risk assessment and regulatory foresight are essential to ensure compliance and consumer protection. Barilla has proactively developed a system to track the expected future regulatory changes, designing a roadmap to be prepared well in advance.  

To navigate these evolving regulations and protect, as far as possible, the health of consumers, Barilla has also implemented a structured horizon-scanning process in order to systematically identify emerging risks. It includes multiple input sources, such as academic environments, testing providers, data trending, manufacturer benchmarking, and also a listening room to understand consumer concerns through monitoring the main conversations on social media. A good example relates to mineral oils prevention across the whole product portfolio, where Barilla proactively worked to mitigate this contamination risk at least a decade before the regulation definition. 

By anticipating potential regulatory changes and scientific advancements, food companies can take preemptive actions to adapt their measures accordingly, to guarantee the most stringent food safety requirements, even ahead of regulations. 

The role of digital transformation in food safety 

A key enabler in modern food safety management is digital transformation. The integration of digital tools into quality and food safety frameworks enhances efficiency, accuracy and responsiveness, and helps to anticipate potential issues. Barilla has been a pioneer in this space, deploying sophisticated data analytics and applying AI-driven monitoring systems to streamline quality and food safety processes. 

Moreover, the adoption of digital tools facilitates the employees’ generational transition, moving from the wealth of individual experience towards data-driven decision-making, democratising data accessibility to include the younger portion of the organisation. 

Digital tools are changing our way of working, moving towards advanced quality assurance, optimising food safety management, reducing operational risks and building the foundations for predictive quality. 

Strengthening the culture of quality 

Beyond technological advancements, fostering a strong quality and food-safety (Q&FS) culture is vital to maintain a solid and continuously improving system. Organisational commitment to quality must extend beyond compliance, to become an ingrained corporate philosophy. This involves continuous training, transparent communication and leadership engagement, to ensure that every stakeholder within the food supply chain prioritises quality and food safety. 

Barilla has always been inspired by the motto “give people the food you would give to your own children”, which is a very good starting point to cultivate such a mindset. Moreover, in recent years the company has embraced a Culture of Quality programme, by implementing targeted initiatives that reinforce quality-conscious behaviours. A good example is the Product Quality Review, where the Q&FS team acts as a consumer testing magazine, analysing Barilla and competitor products on several aspects, such as emerging contaminants, respect of regulations and ingredient lists. They assign scores on the basis of an algorithm and use a traffic light code to get a simplified outcome overview. During this session, they introduce a food safety topic, followed by blind tasting and finally discussing the overall outcome. This kind of session is regularly implemented with several organisational layers, from headquarter to regional offices and to production plants. 

Another good example is the Quality Partner App, a chatbot available on smartphones, where Barilla employees can contribute to improving the product quality by sending feedback about their product experience.  

By embedding quality into the company’s core values, food manufacturers can enhance resilience, drive innovation and maintain the highest standards of consumer protection. 

Conclusions 

The evolving landscape of food safety and quality management presents both challenges and opportunities. By addressing supply-chain vulnerabilities, leveraging predictive models for food safety risks, adapting to regulatory shifts, embracing digital transformation and fostering a culture of quality, food producers can navigate these complexities effectively. Proactive, science-driven strategies will remain vital in safeguarding food integrity and ensuring consumer trust in an increasingly uncertain world. 

Meet the author  

Roberto Buttini is Vice President of Global Quality & Food Safety and Research, Development & Quality (RD&Q) Strategy at Barilla. He is responsible for developing strategies that ensure the highest quality and safety standards across the whole product portfolio, reinforcing consumer trust and brand excellence worldwide. Roberto’s role leading the RD&Q strategy, ensures alignment between innovation and research initiatives with company strategies. With over 30 years of experience at Barilla, Roberto has held leadership positions across multiple roles, including product and process development, research, innovation, quality and food safety.