Bear with me for a few minutes, because this is going to start out talking about one thing but end up talking about something entirely different.
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Beef Products International (BPI) has been in the news lately because their product has been dealing with an unprecedented social media attack. BPI produces finely textured lean beef from beef trimmings and then treats it with NH3 gas to ensure it is free of harmful bacteria. This product is then mixed with regular textured beef to produce the hamburger that was used nearly universally up until the last few weeks.
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A few months ago someone came up with the idea to label the product “pink slime” and a whole cacophony of ill-educated but well-meaning people let their emotions over-ride their logic in a hurry. The market for this completely safe product has essentially disappeared in a few weeks. Just yesterday BPI announced the closure of 3/4 of their facilities and the anticipated loss of 3,000 jobs.
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I personally know several engineers at BPI and have always been impressed with their singular devotion to both Process and Food safety – the product that BPI makes and the people that make it are NOT the same thing that’s being characterized by the media. When I talked to some of them this week they were all taken aback at how quickly this firestorm broke out – and how they wished they had done something to prevent this disinformation campaign from destroying the business earlier.
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..and that, my friends, leads me to something else entirely! Let’s talk about developing relationships.
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You will develop a relationship with your local fire company, the local media and the people and businesses neighboring your facility. The question you have to ask is this: Do I want to develop this relationship right now or do I want to wait until some mishap affects my facility?
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Think about it!
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Do you want to invest the time and effort in developing a positive relationship with those who will respond and be affected by an emergency situation at your facility NOW, or would you rather try and do it while also dealing with the incident? To quote the band Rush: “Even if you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice!”
Get your local fire department in for a tour and throw a pizza party. Join your Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) so you can provide real solutions. Do something to be pro-active today because it might decide the survival of your company in the event of a release.
