"Each building has fresh foods areas, dry foods areas, a service deli and a food court. But the company found that this was only a launching point and set to work on customizing SSOP and HACCP-type criteria for each kind of food-related area in its buildings. "Quite frankly, using HACCP in retail is a struggle, but we've been fortunate in that we've found a way to make it work, and work well for us."Ĭostco's retail SSOP/HACCP program was developed using the government guidelines originally created for food processing operations. "The elegance of our total food safety program is its simplicity."Ĭostco began its retail SSOP/HACCP program approximately five years ago, "when people didn't use 'HACCP' and 'retail' in the same sentence," says Wilson. "This is the four-legged foundation that provides a very solid footing for all of our programs, which are implemented on a daily basis," notes Wilson. "Because food safety is part of the culture here at Costco," says Wilson, "and thus, part of our everyday business, we've been able to develop a very successful, structured program that is unique in its simplicity given how big the total operation is and the fact that we employ 100,000 people."Ĭostco's food safety program is divided into four distinct areas: Food safety operations in the warehouse club buildings, which involves a unique use of sanitation standard operating procedures (SSOPs) and Hazard Analysis & Critical Control Points (HACCP) developed to work in a retail setting knowledge-building food safety vendor audits a company-wide food safety training program and a proactive quality assurance function that focuses scientific and technical expertise on both the food safety and quality of foods manufactured, repackaged or supplied to the company. In addition, Costco Wholesale Industries, a division of the company, operates a food packaging manufacturing business in San Diego, CA and Monroe, NJ, and a meat processing facility in Tracy, CA. As part of its mission to provide club members with high quality products at substantially lower prices than traditional wholesale or retail outlets, Costco also makes available the Kirkland Signature private label product line, which includes food items such as coffee, juice and cookies. The warehouse buildings average 135,000 square feet, with ample space dedicated to the company's in-store service deli, food court, and fresh food and grocery department operations. Costco offers between 3,700 and 4,500 different brand name products to its members at any given time, with fresh food, groceries and related items comprising 50 percent of the company's business. The Issaquah, WA-based wholesale club operator is the largest such company in the U.S., with sales of $37.98 billion in 2002. To walk the walk of food safety at Costco, you've got to cover a lot of ground. It's really easy to talk about it, but it's a little more difficult to walk it." "These are people who understand how important food safety is, and without that kind of top-down support in any company, programs like this aren't successful. "On the operations side, Costco executive vice presidents Joe Portera, Craig Jelinek and Dennis Zook also are tremendous supporters. In particular, Jim Sinegal, president and CEO, Dick Dicerchio, senior executive vice president, and Tim Rose, senior vice president of the fresh food groups give us tremendous support to make food safety part of the culture at Costco," Wilson explains. "The essential reason that we've had such success with our program is that we've always had great support from the top down. But the primary reason that Costco's food safety program is successful throughout such a large operation, says Wilson, can be succinctly stated: Food safety is part of the corporate culture because senior management is deeply committed to it. states, Puerto Rico, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan is the responsibility of Wilson and his U.S.-based staff of 16 food safety professionals. Period."Įnsuring that this basic expectation is met every day for more than 38 million Costco members shopping in 411 membership warehouse stores located in 36 U.S. When you go shopping, you expect to buy food that is safe. Craig Wilson, Assistant Vice President, Food Safety and Quality Assurance, with Costco Wholesale. "Food safety should be absolutely invisible to our members," says R. For Costco Wholesale, with nearly 400 warehouse stores serving more than 38 million members worldwide, dedication to food safety is in the very fabric of its corporate culture-and it shows in the company's distinctly structured, highly successful total food safety system.
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