The safety of our products is the foundation of our business
At Valio, safety is one of the key areas of corporate responsibility. Product safety and quality is ensured through careful approval procedures and monitoring of raw materials and packaging materials, comprehensive traceability, certified food safety and quality control systems, self-monitoring of production, and detailed product information.
How do we ensure the safety of our products?
We maintain and develop food safety management in compliance with the requirements of the FSSC 22000 and BRC standards. Our operations are regularly monitored both by regulatory authorities and independent third parties.
- Comprehensive self-monitoring and HACCP: Our production plants use self-monitoring based on the HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) system, enabling us to proactively identify and prevent health risks throughout the entire production process.
- Raw materials: We accept raw milk only from contract farms belonging to Valio’s owner-cooperatives and whose production conditions we are familiar with. The dairy farmers and Valio both ensure that no pharmaceutical residues end up in the milk.
- Rigorous monitoring: Monitoring covers process equipment, facilities and the entire production chain all the way, including storage and transportation.
- Analyses: We ensure the purity of our products through extensive sampling that exceeds regulatory requirements. We test for pharmaceutical residues, heavy metals, and pathogens, among other things. We also closely monitor consumer and customer feedback.
Traceability
We are able to trace the origin of raw milk and its journey from farm to store. Only dairy farms that belong to our procurement cooperatives and whose product production conditions we are familiar with can supply raw milk to Valio.
Thanks to good traceability, we know which raw materials and packaging materials have been used in each of our product batches, and where each of the product batches we produce has been sent.
When more detailed accuracy is needed, we can also utilize other data as necessary, such as packaging machine number, batch numbers and packaging time stamps. We know exactly where each product batch has been delivered.
Reliable product information
Proper labelling is food safety at its best.
We make sure that all ingredients that may cause allergies or hypersensitivity are clearly listed on packaging labels in accordance with statutory requirements. Proper storage of products is also important for food safety and quality. Our packaging explains how to best store the product.
Independent monitoring
Our food safety work is monitored by independent third parties and regulatory authorities. Our production plants and warehouses are approved by the authorities and subject to regular inspections.
Valio has a clearly defined process and responsibilities in place for food safety crises and recall situations. Guidelines have been drawn up to identify crisis situations; these guidelines list various types of anomalies in a product or operation, their potential consequences for consumers, and possible courses of action in different situations.