Archive for the ‘Sourcing Safe Products’ Category

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Retailers; what is your green or sustainable sourcing plan?

Wednesday, July 14th, 2010

Unfortunately, elsewhere is most likely your competition if they want a job in retail procurement.

In a recent USA TODAY article by Trevor Hughes titled More Colleges using green as a selling tool; the author discusses the impact that green programs have on college students deciding where they will attend College or University. It is a safe bet if these students are using this as criteria for selecting where they will spend the next 4 years of their life, that they will also use the same criteria to make their career decisions.

The article goes on to quote results form The Sustainable Endowments Institute survey in 2009 which found that 27% of colleges and universities included sustainability messaging in their admissions process and that in 2010 69% did. That is a 156% increase in one year.

The Sustainable Endowments Institute focuses on areas such as food sourcing, recycling, and energy efficiency.

Quite often when this author asks this question of mid level managers, associates and employees, I just draw a blank stare. If you have this discussion with investors, the eyes just roll and you can see the note caption saying blah, blah, blah.

If you don?t have a plan you can not blame anyone but yourself.

We look forward to and appreciate your comments.

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We still need to question CHINA.

Tuesday, July 13th, 2010

There was a point in time that sourcing products from China insured a low cost for your product. Then the price of oil went through the roof and melting down containers returned more than trying ship product in them. Even with oil down somewhat from that time, costs are increasing in China as plant safety and quality and worker safety and quality improves. However, there are still probably bargains to be had, but caution should be your guiding word.

A great example of this is a recent find by Chinese officials of tons of milk products tainted with Melamine. If this sounds familiar, it should. This was an issue in 2008 on which this author posted. The scandal actually killed 6 babies and made hundreds of thousands sick at the time. China actually executed two individuals for producing or selling toxic milk. So here we are in 2010 and the problem has still not been totally corrected and we are talking about products that are only sold in China. It would seem that a country would be more concerned about the quality and safety of products made by the Chinese for the Chinese consumer.

As such, companies need to complete the due diligence necessary to insure that the products you are planning to source include detailed raw materials descriptions, formulas and certifications that are mandated globally to insure product quality, safety and environmental impact standards.

Ask your solutions provider what their vetting procedures are for including suppliers in their database?

We look forward to and appreciate your comments.

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We need to avoid Bisphenol A or BPA and retailers need to avoid offering products that contain it.

Tuesday, July 6th, 2010

This author has posted on BPA many times and I continue to warn retailers to find suppliers that offer alternative solutions to products that use BPA.

As a reminder, Bisphenol A (BPA) is a chemical building block that is used primarily to make polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins. Polycarbonate plastic is a lightweight, high-performance plastic that possesses a unique balance of toughness, optical clarity, high heat resistance, and excellent electrical resistance.

 The question posed by a reader in Men’s Health Magazine was I’m freaked out by BPA. How can I cut down? According to the Ask Men’s Health section edited by Ben Court, you can take the following steps.

1. Avoid canned foods.
2. Avoid Polycarbonate containers
3. Avoid Polycarbonate and aluminum reusable water bottles.
4. Avoid Soda and Beer cans.

Be careful out there.

We look forward to and appreciate your comments.

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Keeping track of product recalls is a horrible task for retailers.

Monday, June 28th, 2010

SafeSourcing® takes daily rss feeds from dozens of agencies and other sites and scrolls that inforamtion daily for retailers use. By clicking on the links it will take you to the actual recall source. One of those sites is www.recalls.gov .

The products listed below represent just the month of June recalls to date from the United Sates Consumer Product Safety Commission

1. Scope® Original Mint Mouthwash Recalled by Procter & Gamble Due to Failure to Meet Child-Resistant Closure Requirement
2. Youth Tiara Recalled by Wilton Industries Due to Lead Exposure Hazard
3. Simmons Recalls to Repair Drop-Side Cribs Due to Entrapment, Suffocation and Fall Hazards
4. Million Dollar Baby Recalls to Repair Drop-Side Cribs Due to Entrapment, Suffocation and Fall Hazards
5. LaJobi Recalls to Repair Bonavita, Babi Italia and ISSI Drop-Side Cribs Due to Entrapment, Suffocation and Fall Hazards
6. Jardine Recalls to Repair Drop-Side Cribs Due to Entrapment, Suffocation and Fall Hazards
7. Evenflo Recalls to Repair Drop-Side Cribs Due to Entrapment, Suffocation and Fall Hazards
8. Delta Recalls to Repair Drop-Side Cribs Due to Entrapment, Suffocation and Fall Hazards
9. Child Craft Drop-Side Cribs Recalled Due to Entrapment, Suffocation and Fall Hazards
10. CPSC Announces Recall to Repair Child Craft Brand Stationary-Side Cribs with Dowel Due to Entrapment and Strangulation Hazards
11. Seven Manufacturers Announce Recalls to Repair Cribs to Address Entrapment, Suffocation and Fall Hazards.
12. Baby Walkers Recalled by Suntech Enterprises Due to Fall Hazard
13. Target Recalls Children’s Belts Due to Violation of Lead Paint Standard
14. Regal Lager Recalls Infant Carriers Due to Fall Hazard
15. Infant Apparel Recalled by Kiwi Industries Due to Choking Hazard
16. Comverge Recalls Communication Module Inside TXU Energy Thermostats Due to Risk of Fire Hazard
17. CPSC Announces International Initiative for Strong Safety Standards on Window Coverings
18. Entertainment Centers Recalled by American Signature Due to Fall Hazard
19. Crate and Barrel Recalls Succulent Plant-Shaped Candles in a Pot Due to Fire Hazard
20. Risk of Strangulation Prompts Recall to Repair Roll-Up Blinds by Chicology
21. Dritz™ Electric Scissors Recalled by Prym Due to Fire and Burn Hazards
22. IKEA Recalls Roller Blinds, all Roman Blinds and all Roll-Up Blinds Due to Risk of Strangulation
23. Rhino Toys Inc. Recalls Bead Toy Due to Choking Hazard
24. GE Recalls Front Load Washers Due to Fire and Shock Hazards
25. Bayside Furnishings Recalls to Repair Youth Beds Sold at Costco Due to Entrapment Hazard
26. McDonald’s Recalls Movie Themed Drinking Glasses Due to Potential Cadmium Risk
27. Violation of Federal Mattress Flammability Standard Prompts Recall of Mattresses by IKEA
28. Maytag Recalls Dishwashers Due to Fire Hazard

29. One Step Ahead Recalls Children’s Stacking Toys Due to Choking and Aspiration Hazard
30. Infant Death Prompts Recall of Ring Slings Made by Sprout Stuff Due to Suffocation Risk
31. VOX Amplification Recalls Amplifier Carrying Cases Due to Risk of Injury
32. BRP Recalls Snowmobiles Due to Fire Hazard.

Best of luck to you.

We look forward to and appreciate your comments.

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Retailers, how do you source and select your construction site partners?

Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010

A great place to start is an organization called the The Construction Safety Council which was founded in 1989. Ask you conduction partners if they are a member.

The CSC is a non-for-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of safety and health interests in the field of construction throughout the world. It was chartered by a board of directors composed mostly of large construction company owners and operators whose vision and leadership made the organization possible. Since its humble beginnings in 1989, the organization has quickly grown to become a world class professional construction consortium with associations that span the globe. With an emphasis on quality and customer service, all of the construction safety and health resources and loss reduction tools developed by the Construction Safety Council have been designed to maximize positive impact on your safety program.

The SafeSourceIt™ Global Supplier Database has hundreds of construction companies that are held accountable to these types of standards. Are you asking all the right questions or is your solution provider?

We look forward to and appreciate your comments

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Retail buyers are you checking your supplier’s standards to insure they support your Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)?

Tuesday, June 8th, 2010

Contributions to the welfare of society can come in many forms such as supporting the arts, further education, giving to social welfare agencies, supporting community-building initiatives, reducing pollution, and the other charitable causes. Businesses that adopt socially responsible directives help to allow government agencies to minimize their involvement with the corporation

One way that retail companies can add to their social consciousness is to try and use Certified Reference Materials or (CRMs) which are the controls or standards used to check the quality and traceability of products. Requiring these standards prior to purchasing products indicates a lot about a company’s commitment to its stakeholders which includes their consumers. This will also mitigates risk should recalls occur as a result of harm.

By the way of an example, a reference standard for a unit of measurement is an artifact that embodies the quantity of interest in a way that ties its value to the reference base. At the highest level, a primary reference standard is assigned a value by direct comparison with the reference base.

A primary standard is usually under the jurisdiction of a national standards body such as ISO or The International Organization for Standardization which is an international standard -setting body composed of representatives from various national standards organizations. Relative to the example of a primary standard, you might refer to the Future ISO 26000 standard on social responsibility published as Draft International Standard which ties very nicely to this post.

We look forward to and appreciate your comments.

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Buyers; don’t use Cadmium in your marketing or branding promotional giveaway items.

Monday, June 7th, 2010

Last Friday June 4th   The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a voluntary recall of Twelve Million Shrek drinking glasses that are tainted with Cadmium.

According to Wikipedia Cadmium is a chemical element with the symbol Cd and atomic number 48. The soft, bluish-white metal is chemically similar to the two other metals in group 12, zinc and mercury.

In extreme cases of exposure to cadmium fumes the result can be flu like symptoms including chills, fever, and muscle ache sometimes referred to as “the cadmium blues.”

The company that produced the glasses has been doing so for major companies for years. This reinforces the fact that procurement professionals can not get comfortable in their jobs and that consumer safety, product safety and environment safety are as much a part of the procurement knowledge workers job today as the relatively simple task of picking up the phone to place the next order. Additionally and maybe more importantly, manufacturers can not just assume that the raw materials they are using are safe either. Their buyers need to be as vigilant in terms of what has changed in the supply chain as their customers. If we trace products from the farm to the table so to speak these type of issues don’t need to occur.

Discipline, process and traceability are the pillars of a good procurement team.

We look forward to and appreciate your comments.

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Retail buyers; are your commodities FAIR TRADE certified?

Friday, June 4th, 2010

Buying commodities is a real challenge particularly with the environmental changes the globe is going though and the continuing expansion into global markets. Add to that the changing price of fuel and the impact of shipping on the environment and there is a lot that requires measuring beyond price in order to make the right decisions on behalf of your consumers

An organization that can help is TransFair USA who licenses companies to display the Fair Trade Certified label on products that meet strict international Fair Trade standards

The Fair Trade Certified™ label guarantees consumers that strict economic, social and environmental criteria were met in the production and trade of an agricultural product. Fair Trade Certification is currently available in the U.S. for coffee, tea and herbs, cocoa and chocolate, fresh fruit, flowers, sugar, rice, and vanilla.

What do your commodity specifications look like? Ask your e-procurement solutions provider how they can help.

We look forward to and appreciate your comments

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How do you keep your contracts and suppliers green?

Friday, May 28th, 2010

The primary way of doing this is to insure that all of your contracts support (GPP) or green product procurement. This practice should apply to all contracts regardless as to whether they are for a product or a service.

Green Product Procurement places its focus on the items below as a condition of the contract or a condition of doing business with the host company. This process applies to both products and services that a company provides to or for your company, and may also apply to their own companies endeavors to support the environment in their daily business practices as well.

1.?Products made from recycled content
2.?Biobased products and services
3.?Environmentally prefererable
4.?Energy efficiency
5.?Water efficiency
6.?Use of renewable energy sources
7.?Use of alternative fuels or vehicles
8.?Products do not include? Ozone- depleting substances (ODS)
9.?Lacking in priority chemicals
10.?Use of Electronic Products Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT) for electronics.

Make sure your contract templates include environmental language that supports your companies programs and provide the safest products for your customers.

We look forward to and appreciate your comments.

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Was the recent e.coli settlement a supply chain problem?

Friday, May 14th, 2010

We have posted many time on the need for a traceable supply chain and the need for better due diligence throughout the procurement process including plant, farm and other source inspections. Keeping this data in a format that is searchable in the supplier vetting process is paramount to mitigating risk to consumers, suppliers, manufacturers and other areas of the supply chain is just to great without it.

Cargill Inc. which is a great agribusiness announced yesterday that they were responsible for the life shattering injuries suffered by Stephanie Smith by eating a contaminated burger in 2007. The parties agreed to settle the law suite and the terms were not disclosed beyond that Cargill agreed to cover her care for the rest of her life.

The debate on food safety continues and as it does drives the need for compliance at all levels of the supply chain from the farm to the table and the capability of tracing finished goods from the consumer to the source in order to. Without these tools issues like this will continue to happen.

We look forward to and appreciate your comments.

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