Organic Food Case Study
The Challenge
Organic Food Federation – Bespoke Certification and Reporting Database
The Organic Food Federation is one of the UK’s leading national certification bodies for organic food standards, accredited by UKAS to ISO/IEC 17065:2012. Their work depends on accurate tracking of licensees, products, inspections and certificates, as well as regular reporting to government.
The Federation’s existing database had become difficult to use, limited in functionality and isolated from other systems. Everyday tasks such as updating licensee records, producing certificates and preparing statutory reports for the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF) involved manual workarounds and export to spreadsheets. Generating MAFF returns was particularly time consuming and placed a heavy burden on staff.
RD Research were asked to design and build a replacement bespoke database system that would be easy to use, reuse legacy data, automatically create certificates and generate MAFF reports to the exact format required by the government department.
The Development Process
We began with a series of planning meetings to map Organic Food’s end to end processes: new applications, inspections, product approvals, renewals, non-conformances and reporting.
From this we wrote a detailed specification that defined everything required to support day to day operations and compliance. Wire-frame screens and prototype reports were then created so office staff could see how the new system would work before development began.
This allowed us to confirm how users searched for licensees, recorded inspections, generated certificates and prepared MAFF returns, and to refine the layouts for clarity and speed of use.
With the specification agreed, modules were created for licensees, sites, products, inspections, fees and certification status.
Certificate templates were integrated so that up to date certificates could be generated automatically from the database at the click of a button.
A reporting engine was then implemented to produce MAFF reports in the required formats directly from live data, without exporting to spreadsheets. Throughout the project we used rapid prototyping to demonstrate progress and incorporate suggestions, ensuring the finished system matched the Organic Food’s real working practices.
Key features
- Bespoke certification CRM tailored to organic food standards and UKAS operations
- Reuse and migration of legacy data so historic records remained accessible and consistent
- Intuitive screens for managing licensees, inspections, non-conformances and renewals
- Automatic generation of up to date certificates directly from the database
- Built-in MAFF reporting that produces statutory returns in the required format
- Flexible search, filters and summary views to support day to day office work and audits
- Designed for future enhancement as regulations and reporting requirements evolve
- Integration with the clubs existing social media platforms
Outcome
The new system replaced the previous database and quickly became an integral part of Organic Food’s operations. According to Office Manager Vivien McBride, the database has been in daily use since 2006 and any adjustments have been handled professionally and in good time, making it an essential part of the business.
“Any necessary adjustments to our system have been handled very professionally and in good time. I have no hesitation in recommending RD Research to anyone requiring a bespoke database.”
Vivian McBride, Marketing Manager, Organic Food Federation