"The consumer signs
the paycheck; they purchase what they trust and their trust and their
and their confidence is the basis of the sheep industry's future."
|
Sheep
Quality Audit
In 1992-1993, the American Sheep Industry Association, in conjunction
with USDA, sponsored a quality assurance audit. The purpose of that
audit was to examine all phases of the production of sheep and of the
generation of lamb, mutton, wool, pelts, milk and lanolin. The audit
traced each product from its origin on the farm or ranch through processing
(in animal-harvesting plants and mills) to the consumer. Of importance
in quality assurance programs at the live-animal sector were farm, ranch
and feedlot management practices affecting the quality of sheep products.
There are many reasons for each sheep producer to strive to supply safe,
high quality products.
•Producers have a responsibility
to consumers to provide food that is safe for consumption. This is true
whether they are commercial or purebred producers, manage a lamb feedlot
or are involved in 4-H or FFA programs.
•Addressing the objectives
in this manual will help to ensure the well being of the sheep and alleviate
concerns of consumers about animal welfare.
•Implementing management practices to address safety and quality issues
will offer evidence that the industry is providing safe, high quality
products to consumers and thus will allow sheep producers to continue
to control their own production systems and minimize regulatory intervention.
•Practices that result in safe, high quality products also result in
the highest potential profit to the producer.
•A reputation for high quality
products, such as clean wool and lean lamb, will result in more marketing
opportunities for the producer.
•Production of high quality meat, milk and wool creates feelings of
pride and satisfaction among producers.
About
this Manual
Consumers are concerned about the safety of the food they eat as well
as about the quality of the products they buy. Consumer concerns have
prompted those in every sector of the livestock industry to take a
careful look at the products they market. The Sheep Safety and Quality
Assurance (SSQA) program has been developed to ensure that consumer
products generated by the U.S. sheep industry are safe and of the
highest quality possible.
The Sheep Safety and Quality Assurance (SSQA) manual contains introductory
information, steps to implement the criteria for SSQA programs and
background information about the criteria presented. The manual is
supplemented with additional information in the appendices, contact
lists and glossary of terms. The introductory information includes:
(1) Introduction to Sheep Safety and Quality Assurance, and (2) Introduction
To The Total Quality Management Philosophy. The steps to implementation
include sections 3 through 7 of the manual. In each section, seven
to ten criteria are presented, with supporting information. To become
SSQA Verified, producers must implement objectives and/or procedures
to address the issues outlined in the guidelines and contact a trained
third party to verify compliance with the criteria in their operations.
As producers complete a step of implementation, they should progress
to the next step or set of criteria. Full verification in the SSQA
program will be awarded when all criteria have been addressed in a
production unit.
The
Sheep Safety and Quality Assurance Program
The Sheep
Safety and Quality Assurance (SSQA) program was developed to provide
education to producers pertaining to the concepts and background of
total quality management, to outline the criteria for which production
procedures will assist in meeting the objectives that should be addressed
in a sheep production unit, and to assist in the writing, implementation,
and verification of production objectives and procedures to meet the
outlined criteria. The term "objectives," as used in this manual,
is analogous to the term Good Management Practices or GMPs as used
in describing Total Quality Management Systems, while the term "procedures,"
as used in this manual, is analogous to the term Standard Operating
Procedures or SOPs as used in description of Total Quality Management
Systems.
This manual outlines three "levels" or stages of SSQA implementation
that should sequentially be addressed by sheep producers.
Level 1: SSQA Participant - Education
Level 1 training is designed to educate producers regarding the basis
of assuring sheep safety and quality, to describe and define the safety
and quality guidelines and to assure that producers understand the
concepts and reasoning behind the development of the guidelines and
the importance of their implementation. Completion of Level 1 training
identifies producers as "participants" in the SSQA program.
Level 2: SSQA Certified - Development of Site Specific
Plans
Level 2 training is designed for education of small groups of producers,
assisting them in the development of mission statements, production
flow diagrams, objectives and procedures that will be needed to implement
the SSQA program. Certification at Level 2 implies that producers
understand the concepts needed to develop a site-specific plan, complete
with objectives and procedures. It is important to realize that the
"certification" applies to the producer that completes Level 2 training;
"certification" does not apply to the production unit on which or
for which he or she works.
Level 3: SSQA Verified - Verification
Level 3 training is designed to verify that producers have implemented
the SSQA program and that they are following the guidelines as outlined
in this manual. Verification will be accomplished by trained, independent
third parties who will visit production units to assure that appropriate
objectives and procedures are in place, are being monitored and are
effective. Audits are not meant to criticize producers' practices
but to assist in the process of "continual improvements" of their
management practices in ways that will increase efficiencies associated
with the generation of safe, high quality sheep products. Level 3
verification implies that the SSQA is in place and operating successfully
in a production unit.
|
