FSMA requires food processors control access to those who come into contact with food, so PepsiCo took immediate action to locate a reliable access control provider
FSMA’s final rule for preventing intentional adulteration of food from acts intended to cause wide-scale harm to public health, including acts of terrorism targeting the food supply, includes a section on Vulnerability Assessments where one specific requirement is the evaluation of: “The degree of physical access to the product. Things to be considered would include the presence of such physical barriers as gates, railings, doors, lids, seals and shields.”
These barriers don’t work if they have malfunctioning mechanical systems, nor do they provide a secure food environment without an access control system that records who entered what spaces or opened equipment in the facility and when. Without an adequate software-based access control system, it would be difficult to prove movements of authorized personnel within a plant or track unauthorized people who may have entered the grounds or facility.