Inflation is raging. In this article by Inno-centre published in October 2022 in the magazine L'Actualité alimentaire, three experts give their opinion on the issues for which there are mainly 3 tips to follow.

1st tip: Calculate the cost price, then analyze the profitability of each product

Knowing the cost of each product accurately and, above all, updating it in real time has many advantages for the company.

First, it will help assess the impact of cost increases on the company's profitability, highlighting where to focus on management efforts to reduce them. In fact, perhaps some products require a lot of time for the start-up of the line? Or maybe a lot of machine time or direct labor time? In such cases, it may be useful to review the place of these products in the overall production organization or, indeed, their relevance in the company's product portfolio.

"To get your company out of a difficult situation, working with fewer products focusing on the most profitable and high-volume ones can be a winning strategy!"

- Gilles Boileau, Senior Business advisor

2nd tip: The observation and supervision of a production line can reduce losses

When a company finds itself in a difficult financial situation, it is necessary to tighten the belt quickly.

A vigilant presence on the production line is required. With respect to inputs, a useful question to ask is: is the recipe being followed accurately and thoroughly? Indeed, if the measurement of an ingredient is constantly rounded up, there is a loss every time. The same is true for the outputs: if you sell a 500g product, can you make sure you don't exceed that amount?

In addition, the observation and supervision of the production line will also allow to monitor the periods of stop on the line, on the one hand, as well as the time of setting it up during a change of product, on the other hand. Can we reduce losses, better organize production?

3rd tip: Address staff turnover to ensure more stable and consistent production

"How much does it cost a company to hire a new employee?" asks Flavie Tremblay, senior business advisor at Inno-centre. "In food processing companies, new employees sometimes stay for as little as a few days or a few weeks", observes the expert.

"In today's labour shortage environment with 75 or more employees, I strongly recommend that companies have a full-time resource dedicated to recruiting, as well as an internal resource to conduct worksites and monitor human resources objectives."

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