Case story - Ferguson

Ferguson Plarre Bakehouses reduces
risk of cross-contamination

"We run lean management systems at our bakery, which Vikan's products fit in with perfectly. With the Vikan colour-coded products, we are able to control tool use in each area and, in this way, reduce the risk of cross-contamination. Vikan's system has helped us progress even further towards our hygienic cleaning goal, which is of extreme importance to us as we put great effort into maintaining the highest standards of product quality."

- Raymond Holder, Food Safety Manager at the Ferguson Plarre Bakehouses (FPB) production facility.

About Ferguson Plarre Bakehouses

Established in 1901, FPB remains a 100% Australian family owned and operated business. The company produces quality desserts, pasties, cakes and pies in one central baking facility in Victoria and dispatches products to approximately 50 franchised stores all over Australia.

The FPB business model focuses on delivering amazing quality and taste, ensuring commercial viability and preserving brand and image awareness. FPB stresses the need to maintain the highest of standards across all its franchised stores focusing on culture, customer service, modern design, recognizable brand and products of the highest quality.

Challenge

Like every other food business, FPB is under pressure to maintain cleanliness in the production facility at all times - even during production hours. As the company deals with a range of ingredients that includes eggs and raw meats, such as beef and chicken, the avoidance of cross-contamination and bacterial control is a key business driver.

However, FPB has firmly set of its sights on being one of the most hygienically clean and professional working bakeries in the world. One of the company's most challenging tasks is to continuously keep the bakery so clean and organised that health inspections are welcomed, without notice, at any time of the day or night.

Solution

FPB has implemented Vikan's colour-coded cleaning hygiene system in the production facility. The system fully supports HACCP requirements by making it easier to ensure product safety and to document the company's internal hygiene control, which in turn ensures greater customer loyalty.

Vikan has put considerable research and development into developing hygienic cleaning tools that elevate the cleaning performance in the food industry. Vikan produces its wide tool range from FDA approved raw materials. Their smooth, fully-moulded components make them easy to clean and prevent bacteria build-up, while quick drying plastic products are more resistant to bacterial growth.

The FPB facility has been colour-coded into six zones by Vikan so that each production zone uses a different colour. Tools are stored within each area on brackets of the same colour, which ensures staff always have the right tools to hand. This removes the risk of transferring microorganisms from one part of the bakery facility to another by the correct implementation of cleaning tools.