Britvic plant introduces safety passports

Rugby, UK- Soft drinks company Britvic is launching a training programme to ensure all its 140 employees hold safety passports for the food and drinks industry developed by Safety Pass Alliance Ltd. (SPA), of Southam.

All new employees will undergo the training as part of their induction to the company.  The passport is a robust and secure card - similar to a UK driving licence - that displays a tamper-proof photograph of the successful trainee. The photocard features a special ultra-secure ‘holocote’ finish to prevent fraud.

 “We have been looking at ways of improving our induction process and in talking to SPA we recognised that their two-day safety passport course covers all the health and safety issues in our industry,”  said Martin Berry, quality health safety and environment specialist at Britvic, Rugby.

According to Berry, three Britvic staff were qualifying as trainers to deliver the course. “It will be invaluable to existing operators. Some of them have been here for 15 years and times have changed since they started. The fact that everyone has to renew their passport every three years means that everyone is kept up to date with the latest health and safety legislation and issues in our industry.”

Ray Gibbs, managing director of SPA, said the food and drinks safety passport had been developed specifically at the request of the food and drinks sector which involved leading companies such as Nestle UK, Northern Foods, Geest, Kellogs Europe, Cadbury Trebor Bassett and Bass Brewers.

SPA has introduced safety passport schemes in several other business sectors, where companies had reported a dramatic reduction in accident statistics, stated Gibbs.

With brands like Pepsi, Robinsons and Tango, Britvic has more soft drinks brands in its portfolio than any other UK manufacturer. The company employs about 2,700 people either in its two main offices, seven factories, or network of depots around the country.