The impacts of a formal quality management system: a case study of implementing ISO 9000 at Farmers Cooperative Co., Iowa
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Abstract
We are in an age of great change for agriculture. The effect of globalization is changing the industry that 20 years ago were unforeseeable: the rise of biotechnology use, food safety concerns, fears of bioterroism, and increasing consumer demands. These developments result in an altered landscape of agribusiness management. Managing these developments requires an understanding of the collection of rules: regulatory (business/government), product requirements (business/consumer), and operating practices (business/customer) that defines how the modern company in agriculture operates in this environment.;In respond to these issues, the use of quality management systems (QMS) have filled in on some of these needs. A QMS is a set of policies, processes, and procedures that define how to create products and services in an organization. A formal QMS standardizes how these systems operate and their adoption has greatly increased in the same time frame as a more connected, global economy. This dissertation is case study of the impact of implementing a QMS at Farmers Cooperative Co. (FC) of Farnhamville, Iowa.;The results demonstrated that FC significantly improved the quality of meeting customer specifications, significant improvements in meeting Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requirements of food traceability, and increased monetary value of customer orders through better inventory management.