— OPINION — Imagine that the phone call comes or an email pops into your inbox — “Sir, we have been contacted by the health authorities and they say our product has been linked to illnesses and deaths. What do we do?” So, what do you do? Boar’s Head’s CEO, received that call. Now, what has he done and what will he do? After being involved in every major (and a few minor) food poisoning outbreaks since the Jack in the Box E.
coli Outbreak of 1993, I have seen it all. I have seen good CEOs act badly and make their and their company’s problems worse and I have seen bad CEOs handle the outbreak with such aplomb that they become associated with both food safety and good PR. So, what do you do? Of course, it is always best to avoid the outbreak to begin with.
When I have spoken to CEOs or their boards — generally, pre-outbreak and pre-lawsuit — I always pitch them on “why it is a bad idea to poison your customers.” Putting safe food as the primary goal — yes, alas, even before profits — will (absent an error) gives you a very, very good chance of never seeing me on the other side of a courtroom. But, what if despite your best efforts, or what if you simply did not care, and an outbreak happens.
So, what do you do? First, have a pre-existing relationship with the folks who regulate you. If someone holds your business in the palm of his or her hand, you should at least be on a first name basis. No, I am not suggesting that you can influence your way out of.
