How to Land — and Prepare for — More Food Accounts

Green products can be a natural fit for food and other sensitive accounts. And now that you’re using more green products, maybe it’s time you consider taking on more food industry clients. But how do you attract this type of business? What steps do you need to take to prepare your company to service these sensitive accounts?

Jay Bruesch, technical director/entomologist and resident green guru at Plunkett’s Pest Control in Fridley, Minn., offers these tips:

Scope out the market. How many potential food processing, storage and distribution accounts are in your service area, and which pest management companies are servicing them now? Having a solid grasp of market opportunities and the competitive environment will help you decide whether to invest more resources into this market niche.

Get certified. Get up to date on your state’s certification requirements. Some states require PMPs to be certified in a particular food category to service food plants; in other states, a structural license is enough.

Learn the ins and outs of the regulatory environment. We are all familiar with FIFRA (Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act), and this is a good starting point. But servicing food and pharmaceutical facilities also requires an understanding of the standards set forth by the FD&C (Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act) and its amendments, including the CGMPs (Current Good Manufacturing Practices), HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point), Biosecurity/Bioterrorism (Bioterrorism Act of 2002) and FSMA (Food Safety Modernization Act) of 2011.

Additionally, you must be familiar with the audit requirements of the major third-party food-safety audit agencies. U.S.-based agencies are AIB (American Institute of Baking), ASI (American Sanitation Institute), NSF (National Sanitation Foundation), Silliker Laboratories, and Yum! Brands, which inspects suppliers of food to Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, A&W, KFC and Sonic restaurants. The European/UK standards, born of the Global Food Safety Initiative, are BRC (the British Retail Consortium), ISO, FSSC-22000, and the SQF (Safe Quality Food Institute).

Learn about food processing. Online courses can help you improve your communication efforts with food customers by learning to speak the language of food processing. Purdue University and AIB are great resources.

Write a program. Work with experts at your company, and outside consultants if necessary, to write a comprehensive food processing pest management program that meets all service needs, and complies with all regulatory and third-party auditor requirements.

At a minimum, the program must contain: a generic service description; descriptions of approaches to controlling interior and exterior issues with rodents, crawling insects, flying insects, stored-product insects, spiders, birds, weeds and occasional invaders; a pesticide authorization form; a method of recording trends as shown by device activity (traps and bait stations); forms for completing daily service log reports; a facility map showing the locations of all monitoring devices; a pest sighting log; copies of company and individual licenses and proof of GMP (Good Manufacturing Practices) training; and periodic (often annual) program evaluations.

Prepare for scrutiny. Food processors typically require vendors to supply them with copious data on their company, including details on safety performance. It’s advisable to have OSHA compliance and recordkeeping in place before you approach the food-processing market.

Choose your sales reps and technicians carefully. Put your best talent, whether tenured employees or new recruits, on your food accounts. Get them the training they need to become specialists in servicing food accounts. Your company’s reputation and integrity will be tested in this market like nowhere else.

Get in front of your prospects. Advertise in food and pharmaceutical industry publications. Host a booth at industry trade shows and conventions. And develop brochures, proposals and recordkeeping forms so that you can approach the food industry systematically.