Printable Tags Streamline Meat Production

Albion Systems of Altrincham (UK) is helping Bearfields to streamline its production with track-and-trace labels that meet the needs of what is a craft business.

Albion Systems of Altrincham (UK) is helping Bearfields to streamline its production with track-and-trace labels that meet the needs of what is a craft business.

For more than 100 years, Bearfields has specialised in the production of high-quality traditional hams, gammons and gammon steaks.

Today, the company has three factories fully-licensed to EC standards, all designed to meet the needs of their highly-specialist business, and fitted out to the most exacting standards.

Albion Systems' lock and loop tags have given Bearfields' operatives the opportunity to hand-label every joint of pork that enters the production system, which involves the curing, finishing, and packing of Danefarm joints and steaks.

The lock and loop tags are made by Albion Systems from a tear-resistant material that accepts traditional print, thermal transfer print and pen and pencil marking.

They are claimed to be heat-resistant to 90 degrees C and fully metal detectable, which is essential for food packing lines.

Each individual pork joint makes its journey through the full curing, slow-cooking, finishing, and packing process with its own dedicated lock and loop tag attached to the flesh by the loop process.

Sammy Mangion, Bearfields' operations manager, said: "Basically, the lock and loop tags Albion make for us, which are EFSIS-compliant, perform the same function as a hospital wristband and for maintaining the quality and integrity of our cooked meat products, they are just as important.

Before we begin to fill in the product data on the tags, we choose the appropriate colour of tag - blue for natural hams, green for traditional cure, and so on." He added: "The tag is then matched to a joint, batch coded and the details recorded: kill date, date of receipt and then, as each process is completed, details of cure date, cooking date, time and temperature.

That way, we are always in complete control of the history of the joint and able to maintain our long-established quality standards." Tony Hanmer, sales manager at Albion Systems, commented: "We won Bearfields' contract because we were able to offer truly robust tag construction and performance with price benefits.

We have built up a strong reputation for providing functional labels in many sectors and we are pleased to number such a quality supplier as Bearfields amongst our customers." Albion Systems added that it can also supply lock and loop tags to withstand the higher temperatures experienced in the bakery industry.

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