Quality control (QC) is not an optional extra in food processing; neither is it something done only by large manufacturers. It is an essential component of any food processing business. The purposes of quality control are:
To protect the customers from dangers (eg. Contaminated foods) and ensure that they get the weight and quality of food that they pay for.
To protect the business from cheating by suppliers, damage to equipment (eg. Stones
in raw materials) and false accusations by middlemen, customers or suppliers.
To be sure that food laws operating in a country are complied with.
Quality control need not be time consuming or expensive, and the results of quality control tests should help save money in the long run. In general, quality control procedures should be as simple as possible and only give the required amount of information. Too little information means the test has not done its job; too much information and management decisions may be delayed or confused.
Quality control is used to predict and control the quality of processed foods. It is no use producing a food, testing it to find the quality, and then trying to find a buyer for that particular batch of food. Quality control is used to predict the quality of the processed food and then control the process so that the expected quality is achieved for every batch. This means that quality specifications must be written and agreed with suppliers or sellers, and control points must be identified in the process.
