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101 The importing community needs to do more to comply with the FSVP regulations to make sure that food coming into the U.S. is safe. Conclusion As we begin 2019, all in the specialty food industry should be aware of and working to comply with the PC for Human Food and FSVP that are the backbone of FSMA. The grace period is over. More than 60 percent of the importers who were inspected did not meet the FSVP requirements and were issued a Form 483. A Form 483 is a notice that details objectionable conditions. Management is requested to inform FDA of its corrective actions regarding those con- ditions. Significant observations during the FSVP inspections included: • Failure to: › Develop an FSVP › Have a written hazard analysis › Establish written procedures to ensure that foods are imported only from approved foreign suppliers › Document approval of the foreign supplier › Have a written evaluation of foreign supplier performance and the risk posed by the food › Document and review assessment of another entity's evaluation of foreign supplier performance and the risk posed by the food › Document that food was produced in accordance with LACF regulations › Document determination of verification activities • Incorrect entry data Ron Tanner is vice president, philanthropy, government, and industry relations for the Specialty Food Association. Educate before and WHILE we regulate. Find more information at learning.specialtyfood.com under Food Safety. Build Brand Identity, Drive Demand Building brand identity can plant seeds for customers to buy your product again—hopefully in a bigger size and in an additional channel. However, it is very difficult for new, unproven items to earn or buy placement in the best-selling merchandising areas of c-stores (checkout, coffee bar, etc.) Traditionally, they are reserved to bottom shelves or lower-traffic areas. Aside from supporting products with off-premise advertising, Gaines notes a great idea is to specifically designate a sample case for store personnel to help spread brand awareness. "Store teams are excited about new items when they are made part of the introduction. If employees have the opportunity to taste and like your product, they are the very best salespeople and ambas- sadors," he notes. Pitch a Planogram and Collaborate If c-stores are going to build around natural and specialty products, they need complementary products that will make a strong set. "You don't want to be an island—one brand sitting amidst a bunch of junk food in the store," notes Browne. "You need to be shelved with your competitors." items vs. larger portions, and bundled items in multi-faceted snack packs that are not only complementary to one another but also meet the need of the snacking occasion. "Niman Ranch, Justin's, and Horizon Organic are great examples of successful convenience store products because of their content and functional packaging," Fogarty notes. Gains points out that it is important to call out strong product attributes on packaging. "High-protein, low-calorie, whole grain, etc., are what customers are looking for now," he notes. Flexibility. Even chains of just a few stores have many different lay- outs, fixtures, planograms, and shelving configurations, so you need to consider a retail package and/or display fixture that can facilitate a host of merchandising options. Traditional options can work, but then you need to be flexible when it comes to merchandising. Master Packs. Master packaging is critical, notes Gaines. "C-stores have little or no back-stock storage and very limited refrigerated and frozen storage capabilities, requiring small case counts or inner packings." Date Coding. Fresh items in the grocery perimeter are dominating trends, but c-stores do not have the multiple weekly deliveries required for daily fresh or very tight date-coded products. Gaines suggests date coding of a minimum of 45 days as ideal for the current supply chain models being utilized by most of the channel. (continued on p. 120) the quick on convenience (continued from p. 95) Foodservice, fresh, local, and better-for-you are the buzzwords. FALL 2017 article bug 101 WINTER 2019 specialty food maker