Maximizing Productivity in Food Safety with Sustainable Practices

Ana Cristina Morales is presently the Director of Global Food Safety at Grupo Bimbo. She specializes in food safety and quality, transforming the way the food industry achieves its goals. She has over ten years of experience in the food industry and follows the standards of FS&QA systems, delivering an innovative perspective and creative ways to work. She completed her higher studies in chemical engineering at the National University of Mexico and pursued a master’s degree in food safety after being an operations trainee at Grupo Bimbo.

Can you share about the journey you have had so far and the roles and responsibilities you handle daily in your organization?

I have been working with Grupo Bimbo for 14 years after I graduated in chemical engineering. I embarked on operations within the production area, specializing in bakery. Eventually, I was promoted to the role of internal auditor in food safety and a project manager for the operations directions. I wanted to pursue a master’s degree in food safety, so I left the company, but I was recruited again once I completed my post-graduation. The comeback was huge as I was promoted to the head of quality and food safety, overseeing the Mexico division. I used to handle operations in bakeries and compliance with GFSI certifications. This included checking the requirements for quality and food safety for suppliers, inspections and the communication process for backward and forward regarding food safety issues, trends, complaints and monitoring performance.

I got the opportunity to become the Global Office of Technical Services for two years. It was at the nascence, evaluating the activities as technical services that can focus on production, innovative technologies, operations, and sustainability. Before three years, I was assigned to oversee the global direction of food safety. These are the major roles that I am engrossed with the objective of transforming the quality and food safety area, resulting in a more efficient and brief standard for food safety.

“We are committed to improving food production by adhering to food safety compliance. We have leveraged technology to balance food safety and sustainability, minimizing downtime and maximizing productivity and aim to use water resources wisely in the cleaning and sanitizing process.”

We are now migrating to have robust globalized standards in food safety, leveraging new technologies and implementations. The most important role I have been doing and will continue for another three to five years is to create a balance between sustainability and food safety, especially in water footprint. One of the prerequisite programs in the food industry is hygiene, and we facilitate this by excessive water use. We are currently working on effective cleaning with minimal use of resources to maintain the balance between food safety and the environment.

What are the latest technologies or strategies you take to ensure you meet the recent regulations and standards related to food safety?

The first and foremost thing is to understand the basics of cleaning and integrating it with technologies. We are not emphasizing innovations currently but utilize the existing tools and techniques to a large extent. For instance, we are migrating from wet cleanings to dry cleanings by adhering to food safety regulations. Likewise, we are looking for more such projects where we can recirculate water within the bakery operation. It is important to consider the water quality after its use for processes like filtration, chlorination, or sanitization to reintegrate into the system. This is how we can focus on minimizing downtime and maximizing productivity. Traditionally, there is a notion that if there is a presence of foam, it indicates cleanliness; this needs to change this paradigm to improve the cleaning process within the company and the industry as a whole.

What industry trends do you anticipate will significantly impact global food in the next couple of years?

The latest industry trend we anticipate is zero waste of water and recirculating the used water. Another important trend that we are seeking is that industrial wastewater can reenter not only the services but also the products. We prioritize meeting drinkable water standards by treating and enhancing the quality of water discharged from cleaning processes. We want to make use of sustainable chemicals like detergents and sanitizers to create a balance between food safety and sustainability. This would help us to prevent microbiological contamination and reduce the amount and concentration of these chemicals.

What would be your key piece of advice to your fellow peers or aspiring professionals to stay ahead of trends and navigate the changing space?

One of the most important things that I have understood from my experience is that we need to understand the basics of science because having the basics as the foundation or baseline will give a better outcome. The other aspect I want to emphasize is being resilient in using water wisely. While engaging in the cleaning process, we are unaware of the amount of water we are using, leading to well-documented water risk droughts. Therefore, we must be conscious while utilizing water in the food industry, not as individuals but collectively as a company, to have consistent and high-quality food safety. We need to think out of the box to implement new programs and initiatives to attain desired outcomes.