Color-coding benefits everyone from the CEO to individual workers. Gaining organizational support for color coding is as simple as understanding what appeals to each role and clearly presenting the benefits. Whether you're a plant safety officer or a salesperson at a distribution company, here's what you need to know to secure company-wide buy-in.
Plant Owners – Minimize Risk and Product Waste
Plant owners bear the responsibility of running a safe processing facility on their shoulders.
Color-coding can enhance the safety of day-to-day operations, helping to lighten that burden. In the event of a food safety incident, owners/operators must demonstrate due diligence if their product causes illness or death. Color-coding is a recognized and effective method to prevent cross-contamination and is widely supported by standards organizations. BRC v.7 (2015) mandates that BRC-certified companies use either color-coding or “visually distinctive” tools in high-risk areas. Implementing color-coding is a significant step toward demonstrating to auditors that a company is taking appropriate measures to reduce risk and promote food safety.
Beyond reducing the risk of cross-contamination, color-coding also helps minimize the impact of a foreign body recall. If a tool breaks and contaminates a product, color-coded zones—organized by area or even shift—make it easier to trace the source. This can reduce the amount of product that needs to be recalled or removed from shelves.
Middle Management – Simplify Training and Pinpoint Issues
Color-coded tool stations can drastically cut the time required to train each employee. Rather than navigating a complex system for tool placement, employees can immediately recognize where each tool belongs. This is particularly useful in food processing facilities, which often experience high staff turnover. A fully color-coded system simplifies training and makes it easier for new employees to adapt quickly.
These stations also promote accountability. It’s easy to identify when tools aren’t returned to their designated places. With each tool assigned to a zone, operations can remain efficient and safe. If a tool goes missing, it’s simple to trace based on the color code. Retraining is also easier when it’s visually apparent that someone is using the wrong tool for a task.
Employees – Streamline HACCP Compliance
For executives, training means a financial investment. For employees, it’s time spent away from production. Most workers appreciate a simple, intuitive system that doesn’t require memorizing where to find tools. Color-coded stations prevent clutter, such as brooms leaning against walls or buckets left in walkways, reducing the chance of accidents.
Investing in a fully color-coded system demonstrates a commitment to food safety that employees notice. Cultivating a workplace culture that prioritizes product safety helps workers feel good about their contributions and motivated to perform better.
Conclusion – Creating a Culture of Safety and Efficiency
Getting organizational buy-in is essential for successfully implementing a color-coding system. Without it, the initiative might not be executed effectively, or at all. However, once color-coding becomes ingrained in the company culture, it can streamline operations, simplify training, and significantly reduce risk, benefiting the entire organization.
