Our Commitment To Food Safety
We are a family here at Stern Produce and, as such, the health and safety of our employees and customers are our main priority. Our facility is regularly inspected by third-party auditors, is SQF Level 2 certified, and operates with a HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) plan. We regularly test our warehouse management protocol and choose to work with GAP (Good Agricultural Practices) certified farms.
At Stern, our commitment to food safety and security is second to none. Our team of highly qualified professionals manages and monitors the entire fresh food safety supply chain, from growers to distributors to customers, and our focus on food safety extends from the largest of national farm partners to the smallest of local family farms that supply our distribution network.
All suppliers and distributors in the PRO*ACT family are inspected by approved third-party auditors and required to have food defense programs in place. Stern has been an SQF Level II facility for many years now and it is a requirement for all of their government contracts.
In times of crisis, our crisis management team responds immediately to any recall or outbreak situation and quickly communicates pertinent information to our customers and distributors.
Audits & Programs
In addition to continuous inspections by our Food Safety Team, we undergo annual audits by independent third party inspectors. Some of our additional food safety programs include:
- SQF Certification
- HACCP Program
- Food Defense Program
- Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP)
- Foreign Materials Program
- Employee Training Program
- Cleaning & Sanitation Program/Training
- Security Program/ Training
- Shelf Life Testing
Quality Control & Traceability
Our highly trained warehouse and quality assurance team thoroughly inspects all products upon arrival to guarantee quality and freshness. After product is received, our state of the art warehouse management system allows us to not only efficiently and effectively fulfill customer orders, and maintains complete traceability. In the event of a product recall, Stern Produce can determine immediately if any of the implicated product has gone through the system allowing us to quickly identify and notify any affected customers.