Standardizing recipes in meat processing is one of the most important conditions for ensuring consistent quality and optimizing production costs. In Romania, many small and medium-sized processing units still operate without clearly documented procedures, which leads to significant raw material losses and variations in the quality of the final product.

According to a study conducted by the European Meat Network in 2024, losses caused by the lack of standardization can exceed 5–7% of the raw material used, the equivalent of tens of thousands of euros annually for a medium-sized processor.

European legislation, particularly Regulation (EC) No. 852/2004 on food hygiene, recommends the use of clearly defined working procedures integrated into HACCP plans. In Romania, ANSVSA inspections in 2024 found that nearly 18% of the factories inspected did not have complete recipe standardization systems.

Examples from Germany and Denmark show that implementing digital recipe management software reduces raw material losses by 10–15% and ensures greater product consistency.

For Romanian processors, investing in recipe standardization is not only a legal obligation but also an opportunity to increase profitability and meet the increasingly strict demands of the market.

(Photo: Freepik)