System Dynamics Simulation to Test Operational Policies in the Milk-Cheese Supply Chain Case study: Piar Municipality, Bolivar State, Venezuela.

With the purpose of detecting the impact that variations of demand cause in the milk-cheese supply chain, and determining how the operational policies of capacity, inventories or labor force can mitigate this impact, a system dynamics simulation model has been designed based on a survey conducted on a sample of cheese manufacturers and their links with milk farms, transportation companies and cheese distributors. This supply chain will be consolidated when a milk center that will collect the raw milk is completed. From this center, and after adequate treatment, milk will be distributed to the different cheese manufacturers in the supply chain. Managing adequately the milk-cheese supply chain represents an important challenge due to the short life of these products. Although this study was done in a region in Latin America, its results can be applicable to food supply chains by introducing some modifications. The milk-cheese supply chain in this case study contemplates three milk producers, one milk center, five cheese producers and several distributing agents. These companies operate individually under normal conditions, but they have understood that their integration in a supply chain improves the competitiveness of all its members. That is to say, the sum is greater than the parts. For its initial design a simulation software model is used in which the resources of the supply chain are optimized. Later the product of this optimization facilitates some initial values to be used in the system dynamics model in which causeeffect or influence relationships have been previously established considering the most representative variables. Finally, changes in operational policies that can reduce the level of pending orders in the supply chain are tested using other simulation software. The main contribution of this research is that it can serve as support or contribute to reduce the uncertainty in the decision making process of the supply chain management due to the speed with which individual or combined policies can be analyzed. In response to a variation of demand the most adequate policy may be selected and that can be done before the policy is implemented

Food Safety Management in a Global Environment: The Role of Risk Assessment Models

Quantitative risk assessment models are playing a minor role in the development of the new EU legal framework for food safety. There is a tendency of the EU institutions to apply the precautionary principle versus the predisposition of the USA institutions to rely on risk analysis. This paper provides a comparison of the role played by quantitative risk assessment models in the development of new policies on food safety in the EU and in the USA, focusing on a study case: the supply chain of shell eggs. We suggest that EU regulatory bodies should reconsider the role that quantitative risk assessment models have to play in order to design more effective food safety management systems.Food safety policy, food safety assurance, risk analysis, risk assessment, precautionary principle, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety,

Assessment Of Human Health Risk Associated With Methylmercury In The Imported Fish Marketed In The Caribbean

The decline in marine and freshwaters catches in recent years in Colombia has led to a change in dietary habits, with an increase in the purchase and consumption of imported fish. This is of particular concern as fish are sometimes caught in mercury-contaminated waters, and are subsequently sold canned or uncanned. In addition, canned tuna has received little attention as it is widely assumed that concentrations are low. In this study, total mercury (THg) and methylmercury (MeHg) concentrations were evaluated in three imported fish species marketed in Colombia, Prochilodus lineatus, Prochilodus reticulatus, and Pangasianodon hypophthalmus, plus four brands of canned tuna and one of sardines. One brand of tuna showed the highest mean concentrations of THg (0.543 ± 0.237 μg/g, wet weight, ww) and MeHg (0.518 ± 0.337 μg/g ww), while concentrations in P. hypophthalmus were approximately 30 times lower (≈0.02 µg/g ww). The estimated weekly intake (EWI) in children was above the provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI) of MeHg established by the Joint FAO/World Health Organization (WHO) Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) in 2007, 1.6 μg/kg body weight (bw) per week, for all the canned tuna brands. Values for adults were below PTWI, whereas for women of childbearing age, values were above PTWI only for brand D of canned tuna. The estimate of the potential risk indicated that MeHg levels in canned tuna can generate negative effects in vulnerable groups, while the EWI of fresh fish did not pose a threat to the general population. Therefore, establishing strategies to address the high consumption of canned tuna, and continuous monitoring to control commercial food, are recommended to decrease Hg exposure

Modeling Ovoproduct Spoilage with Red Led Light

Heat-treatment of ovoproducts is often required to ensure microbial safety. However, it has been shown that in most microbial species slow heating, or heat shocks may induce a higher heat resistance, that means that it is not possible to remove the microbial flora completely. These microorganisms produce on ovoproducts spoilage especially when the cold chain is broken along the transportation and/or storage. As a result, the life span for the product is shortened. The microbial activity inside the product causes changes in several physical properties, which can be supervised using optical methods. The aim of this work is to monitor the sigmoid behaviour underlying the ovoproduct evolution and spoilage by means of red LED light. For two commercial types of liquid and pasteurized egg white, storage at 9°C, an average correlation of r=0.94 has been found between microorganism growth and mean grey level of LED light passing though the sample. The results show that it is possible to develop very simple predictive models taking into account only one optical parameter corre¬sponding to a single LED

Human Health Impacts Of Exposure To Metals Through Extreme Consumption Of Fish From The Colombian Caribbean Sea

The health risks of metal exposure due to the high consumption of fish were assessed for a riverine population living on the Caribbean coast of Colombia. The concentrations of metals (Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb and Zn) in the edible tissues of fish were determined and used for risk assessment. The daily fish consumption of residents (n = 95) was as high as 283, 366 and 469 g/day in children (CH), women of childbearing age (WCHA) and the remaining population groups (RP), respectively. The estimation of the potential risk (HQ) indicated that there was no health risk from most of the metals, because they did not exceed their related reference doses, with values of HQ < 1. Although the concentrations of Pb and Hg were not particularly high in fish (<0.2 µg/g), their possible health effects for vulnerable groups are of great concern due to the extremely high fish intake. The Pb intake for all groups was higher than the lower confidence limit of the benchmark dose for nephrotoxicity and neurodevelopmental effects in children. The weekly intake of methylmercury was also elevated, with values approximately 3, 2 and 1.5 times the provisional tolerable weekly intake for CH, WCHA and RP, respectively. Moreover, higher Hg levels were found in top predators, whereas maximum levels for other metals were found in bottom-feeding fish. This study highlights that an accurate data of daily intake, a continuous monitoring of metals in fish and their related fish consumption advisories to protect subsistence fishing communities are recommended in a local and worldwide context

Knowledge Management in Food Supply Chains

The object of the present article is to discuss Knowledge Management (KM) in the Agrifood Supply Chain (ASC). In the 21st century, the ASC is under strong tensions. This is evident in the drastic changes in the global scene. For example, in the year 2008, food prices were high and unstable. In the last years, the importance of knowledge as a source of competitive advantage for organizations has increased considerably, so it is necessary its management in the ASC in order to surpass the challenges of the 21st century. KM is a direction tool that focuses in determining, organizing, directing, providing and supervising the practices and activities related with the knowledge (intangible active) required to achieve the strategies and objectives of the business or industry, generating a value for the organization at the moment to reach capabilities and competences. In inter-organizational environments, KM is centered on horizontal alliances between two or more partners. However, there are few authors who have analyzed the vertical alliances between suppliers and customers (the supply chain). The existing KM models are applicable for the ASC, as long as a series of conditions are present in the same one. Among these conditions there is one which prevails: The different enterprises that integrate the ASC must coordinate themselves in order to constitute a dynamic network, in which learning barriers are eliminated, so knowledge can flow freely through them. In conclusion, the development of KM models in the ASC, in the framework of untimely, temporary and structural changes in the globalised world, represents a necessary tool to offer safety and quality food to the world-wide population in the 21st century. In this way, food markets will tend to become stabilized in the long term and adequate answers can be provided to the more vulnerable communities and region

Cycle of Knowledge in the Management of the Supply Chain of Corn for Human Consumption

The objective of this study is to characterize the cycle of knowledge in the supply chain of the industry of corn for human consumption. White corn is cultivated almost exclusively for human consumption and it has a significant value in the food supply in countries whose diet has a high proportion of this variety of corn, such as: Venezuela, México and Colombia in America, and the Republic of South Africa and Sahel countries in Africa. Corn is produced in Venezuela, under rainfed conditions and in a highly mechanized production system. The cycle of knowledge is defined as a progressive spiral in which knowledge is created, stored, transferred, applied and preserved, in order to increase the competitiveness and  sustainability of organizations and companies in the food supply chain. This non experimental and crosssectional research is of a descriptive type. It was conducted in Venezuela during the second semester of 2009 in the supply chain of white corn, specifically, at the level of first tier producers (primary sector). The population is constituted by 1,754 producers of corn in the most important producing regions of the country. The representative sample was selected by the stratified sampling technique with proportional allocation: by association of corn producers and according to the grain yield. A questionnaire was designed and conducted according to the structured survey method. Its validity was verified by discriminant tests of items and its reliability through Bartlett's test, variance factorial analysis, Kaiser/Meyer/Olkin and Cronbach Alpha, achieving the last one a value of 0.9276.The production units have an average area of 67.17 ha, with 1.97 permanent workers and 4.06 temporary workers. They obtained a physical productivity of 4,210.45 kg/ha. The Knowledge Index (KI) achieved a value of 69.78% and the Perception Index of the results (PI) was 76.06%. The Pearson correlation among these indices was positive and significant with a value of 0.51. The factorial analysis for principal components with rotated factors allows obtaining four factors from the five dimensions originally considered. These factors are: (1) knowledge creation, (2) knowledge storage, (3) knowledge transfer and application, and (4) preservation of knowledge.The results allow us to conclude that the cycle of knowledge is managed in four stages in an intuitive and predominantly tacit manner which is the reason why those practices related to explicit knowledge become the agents of differentiation. Moreover, the existence of a positive correlation between the Knowledge Index and the Perception Index of the positive results by the producer was also proven

Gestion del conocimiento en el sector agroalimentario

The objective of the article is to discourse about the management of the knowledge in the food chain. In the 21st century the food chain is being submitted to forts tense that can affect negatively its capacity to give the alimentary products to the whole world population. In this sense, the public opinion is increasingly sensible and the technical and legal procedures that govern the theme are more exigent in function to reach a food supply: sufficient, opportune, continuous and of quality to accessible costs, without prejudice of the health of the consumers and of the maintenance of the environment. This purpose could be reached if the knowledge is managed adequately, because this one has become into a source of competitive advantage for the organizations. The management of the knowledge is a tool of strategic direction of the practices and activities related to the knowledge (intangible actives) required to reach the objectives of the business or industry. Its application in the food industry will improve its levels of competitiveness and sustainability. Key words: food chain, management of the knowledg

Supervisión de la degradación de ovoproducto mediante diodos emisores de luz

La extrema sensibilidad de los ovoproductos al deterioro microbiano hace necesaria la aplicación de un tratamiento térmico que asegure su inocuidad. El hecho de que el tratamiento térmico no asegure la completa erradicación de la flora microbiana junto con la falta de mantenimiento de la cadena de frío a lo largo de la distribución y/o conservación del mismo limita y acorta la vida útil del producto. La degradación microbiana del ovoproducto afecta a ciertas propiedades físicas del mismo cuya alteración puede ser objeto de supervisión mediante técnicas ópticas siendo el objetivo de este trabajo la realización de un estudio preliminar para la supervisión de la degradación de ovoproducto mediante LED con el objeto de hacer una propuesta de implantación en laboratorios de calidad en la industria. Los resultados muestran que en clara líquida pasteurizada el aumento del contenido microbiano a lo largo del tiempo de almacenamiento se correlaciona (con valores de hasta r = 0.97) con el incremento en el nivel de intensidad lumínica detectado en las muestras. En la yema a partir de niveles altos de concentración de microorganismos los fenómenos de turbidez y gelificación se identifican con una disminución en los valores de los parámetros ópticos considerados

Supervision of ovoproducts spoilage with red led light

Heat-treatment of ovoproducts is often required to ensure microbial safety. However, it has been shown that in most microbial species slow heating, or heat shocks may induce a higher heat resistance, that means that it is not possible to remove the microbial flora completely. These microorganisms produce on ovoproducts spoilage especially when the cold chain is broken along the transportation and/or storage. As a result, the life span for the product is shortened. The microbial activity inside the product causes changes in several physical properties, which can be supervised using optical methods. The aim of this work is to monitor the sigmoid behaviour underlying the ovoproduct evolution and spoilage by means of red LED light. For two commercial types of liquid and pasteurized egg white, storage at 9ºC, an average correlation of r=0.94 has been found between microorganism growth and images mean grey level of LED light passing though the sample. The results show that it is possible to develop very simple predictive models taking into account only one optical parameter corresponding to a single LED