Over the past weeks there have been ongoing news stories about urgent product recalls from some of the largest British supermarkets, amid fears of food poisoning- from listeria to mysterious cat illnesses, most recently mentioned in the Guardian. Wouldn’t it be great if supermarkets knew how to effectively use their data in real-time to both prevent and pre-empt these situations spiralling out of control?
In situations like this week’s urgent recall of products over fears of dangerous bacteria like listeria, speed and accuracy are essential. If recalls are not dealt with efficiently, major brands like Tescos and Sainsburys could be faced with serious lawsuits and reputational damage.
A real-time flow of data can be the key differentiator in helping supermarkets avoid these potentially catastrophic outcomes. By enabling a supply chain based on seamless data movement, organisations could carry out product recalls with pinpoint accuracy, receiving information about bad batches of certain products instantaneously.
With real-time data, supermarkets can react faster to remove recalled items before it’s put into a shopper’s basket, or perhaps even intercept the product before it’s unloaded from lorries to hit the shelves.