MEAT+POULTRY - September 2024 - 46

SANITATION
Two-pronged
approach
KJ Poultry operates both slaughter and cooked
processing areas. Because the company felt it
could cut some costs while keeping the strictest
kosher standards, it decided to try in-house
sanitation in the cook area of the plant.
" We wanted to try in the cooking area where
it needs to be cleaner than the slaughter area,
and the inspector is stricter over there, " Meni
Bruk said. " We wanted to see if we could work
it out, and we did. We're still doing it. "
Bruk believes that barring a major situation
KJ will continue to use both an in-house team
and a third party for its sanitation.
" Unless something happens and people quit
somehow, I will keep it that way, " he said. " It's
way cheaper. Tomorrow morning, maybe if I
had to hire a new crew, I will think again. "
Sappington's case, he sees it as an advantage.
However, Sappington noted leverage, in
terms of the contractor's quality of work, as
another advantage.
" The industry
as a whole
is in a spot
where you're a
hero or a zero. "
- RICK SAPPINGTON
" What I mean by that is you can set the bar
kind of much higher for a third party because
you're paying them, " he said.
IN-HOUSE
An in-house sanitation team first and
foremost comes with more control, both
over the consistency and standardization
of policies and procedures. The facility
maintains direct management and oversight
of their own employees, as well as setting the
expectations for immediate response to any
issues that may occur.
" However, the ability for the processor
and contract vendor to coordinate on plant
needs in a timely manner can sometimes
prove challenging, creating a sense of
limited control from the processor's
46 MEAT+POULTRY | 09.24 | www.meatpoultry.com
standpoint and slower response to issues, "
Tapley said. " Using contractors for a key
business practice also exposes processors to
vulnerabilities if the third-party company is
unable to meet the needs or has unforeseen
business interruptions. "
Bruk, who uses both in-house and thirdparty
sanitation at KJ Poultry, said in-house
incurs less cost and said the control of the
in-house method is advantageous.
" It's a direct cost, there is nobody in the
middle that also needs to make a living, " Bruk
said. " You know who is doing the job and then
you know, day-to-day operations, so if you
want to change that, it's your management. It's
basically in your control just like anything else
in production. That's basically the upside. "
The Seaboard Foods pork plant in Guymon
recently changed from contracting a third
party to an in-house sanitation team. In light of
recent events in the meat processing sanitation
industry, the company felt taking control of its
sanitation made more sense.
" The industry as a whole is in a spot where
you're a hero or a zero, " Sappington said. " If
you don't make the news, you're a hero. If you
do make the news, you're a zero. We'd rather
control our own destiny on that versus the
third party that gets us in trouble and gets us in
the paper. "
Sappington said the tough part of bringing
sanitation in house was not procedural. He
views plant sanitation the same way he views
operating production. A line has people doing
tasks that constitute the overall procedure
necessary to achieve the goal. People are hired
to do a job, and the processes are carried out.
The difficulty in-house sanitation adds is
100% of the accountability now falls on the
facility. The chemical usage and its effect on
the environment, waste treatment and shelf life
ability now become more relevant.
" They were relevant before, but you had
a third party to lean on, a partner to figure
that out while I run my business, but now it's
part of my business, " Sappington said. " That's
the difference. "
MAKING CHOICES
Whether a processor chooses to use a third
party or an in-house team for its sanitation,
there are many factors that need consideration.
In the case of a third party, who you choose to
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