GA Foods + MyFieldAudits
See how GA Foods leveraged the MyFieldAudits platform to deliver millions of meals to at risk populations while ensuring food safety, compliance and integrity.
GA Foods
4,000+
Inspections Completed
2.3
Million Boxes Delivered
10
Production Facilities
Project Overview
GA Food Service has a long and stable history of providing nutritious meal solutions. The company was incorporated in 1973 in Florida and for the first several years, focused on supplying hot, nutritious meals to senior and child nutrition programs in Florida. From their central production facility in St. Petersburg, they continue to provide this service to programs ranging anywhere in size from 50 to over 4,000 hot meals per day.
The Case
2020 brought a host of challenges to businesses and individuals around the world. In the US, supply chains were thrown into chaos, leaving many independent farmers sitting on valuable harvests with a ticking expiration date. The USDA created the Farms to Families program, allocating funds to purchase surplus food supplies from small American farms and redistribute them to at-risk populations. Already experts at distributing meals en masse, GA Food Service stepped in to fill the role of pick-up, packaging and distribution in this critical supply chain.
With things moving fast, they needed a way to monitor package accuracy and safety throughout the supply chain. Along with the risk of individuals getting sick due to improper food handling, the USDA had stringent standards for the program and would require proof of compliance.
That’s where MyFieldAudits stepped in. Already helping support GA Foods with ongoing sanitation and operational checks, their VP of Operations. John Gyza quickly identified MyFieldAudits as a tool to monitor their supply chain, food handling and product accuracy to ensure both safety and government compliance.
Implementation
With an account already live and a dedicated account manager, the Operations team simply had to forward inspection materials to MyFieldAudits. They were rapidly configured, reviewed by the GA Foods Team, modified and launched in a matter of days. Additional logins were created to ensure key stakeholders had access to the tool, a quick training was held to set inspection expectations and the program was ready to launch.
Outcomes
Over the course of 4 months, over 4,000 inspections were performed – monitoring for compliance throughout every step of the supply chain. The team was able to effectively check and document that safe temperatures were managed throughout transportation and that their food packages met quantity, quality and authenticity standards. As expected, the USDA dropped by for a surprise inspection to ensure both safety and authenticity compliance. John Gyza, VP of Operations at GA Foods was able to quickly share their entire history of digital records and reports, satisfying compliance requirements. “Had we not been able to show accurate records of our QA process, the program would have been pulled and we wouldn’t have received reimbursement” according to John.
As a company, the platform helped GA Foods break new ground. The tool allowed them to rapidly mobilize their production facilities into distribution centers across multiple states. “The tool gave us visibility and structure we needed across multiple facilities”, John states.
“The tool gave us visibility and structure we needed across multiple facilities”
GA Foods
The diligent work of the GA Foods team combined with MyFieldAudits resulted in 2.3 Million food boxes being delivered to non-profit organizations serving at-risk populations. As a result, GA Foods has been designated an approved vendor by USDA and can now rapidly assist on future projects to help serve those in need.