Level Ground Coffee Replace 30 Clipboards with Icicle’s Food Safety Software
Food safety software helped Level Ground Coffee Roasters replace 30 clipboards and move QA checks, SOPs, training documentation, COAs, and audit records into one digital system with Icicle ERP.
Level Ground Coffee Roasters is a Canadian coffee roasting company based in Victoria, BC. The company has been roasting coffee for almost 30 years, starting small with a strong focus on fair trade and making sure farmers and producers receive a fair price for their product.
Michel Blankenborg, Quality Control Manager at Level Ground, has worked closely with Icicle as the company moved more of its food safety and quality control workflows into a digital platform.
“We started out very small scale with a focus on fair trade,” Michael explained. “Making sure that the farmers, the producers that are actually growing that coffee, are receiving a fair price for their product.”
As the company grew, so did the complexity of its food safety records. Level Ground had multiple production lines, packaging machines, roasting activities, receiving logs, pre-operational inspections, cleaning checklists, training documentation, and customer documentation needs. Much of that was still being managed through paper forms or an older in-house system.
That led Level Ground to search for a more complete food safety software platform that could help bring more of its QA and food safety program into the digital age.
The Challenge: Level Ground Coffee Had Too many Paper Forms and Manual Records
Before Icicle, Level Ground used a custom system built in-house. Michael described it as excellent in many ways, but said it was showing its age and limitations.
“We had come from using a bespoke system that was built in-house by our own IT guy, which was excellent and we still use it for some things,” Michael said, “but it was showing its age and its limitations.”
The company also relied heavily on paper forms. As Level Ground Coffee added more production lines and roasting machines, the paperwork continued to grow.
“We run multiple production lines for our different packaging machines. There’s roasting, there’s our receiving logs, all of that,” Michael explained. “Most of that was done using paper forms.”
For Michael, that meant stacks of paperwork arriving on his desk for review. For production staff, it meant managing forms across the facility while trying to complete their work efficiently.
“As our company has grown and we’ve added more production lines and more roasting machines, that’s meant more and more pieces of paper on a regular basis,” Michael said.
The goal was clear: reduce the friction of paper-based QA records, make information easier to find and verify, and create a more consistent food safety system for staff, managers, customers, and auditors.
Why Level Ground Coffee Needed Icicle ERP
Level Ground was looking for a platform that could digitize paperwork and forms while also supporting more detailed food safety documentation for customers and auditors.
One key need was the ability to produce Certificates of Analysis, or COAs, more easily. Before Icicle, that process was manual. When customers requested a COA, the team would open a Word document and type in the required information.
“We wanted to find something that could cover a lot more digitized paperwork,” Michael said, “and also be able to produce more food safety details for customers or auditors when they were asking for it.”
Level Ground also wanted a system that could help produce food safety plans, HACCP plans, production flows, facility maps, and other documentation more easily. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s preventive control plan guide reinforces the importance of written food safety documentation that shows how hazards are identified and controlled.
Icicle stood out because food safety was clearly built into the platform from the start.
“We really appreciated how much Icicle was built around food safety,” Michael said. “It was very clearly put together with food safety systems in the forefront during the design process.”
The Solution: Level Ground Coffee Digitized SOPs, Forms, Training, and QA Tasks.
During implementation, Level Ground focused on moving standard operating procedures, training documentation, forms, recurring tasks, and QA workflows into Icicle.
“We especially wanted to look at getting our standard operating procedures and our training documentation, all of our forms and everything ported over,” Michael said. “We have a lot, as it turns out.”
Preparing documentation for import took work. Some SOPs used older language, and some documents had gone through multiple iterations over the years. As the team prepared everything for Icicle, they also found areas that needed to be updated before moving over.
“Preparing everything for import into Icicle led to us getting sidetracked a fair bit on, wait, we need to update this before we move it over,” Michael said.
Ethan from Icicle helped with the import and organization process.
“Ethan especially was very helpful in making sure that all those were brought over and categorized properly in the Icicle system,” Michael said.
The implementation also gave Level Ground a cleaner structure for how documentation should be organized going forward. Instead of having knowledge spread across clipboards, paper files, and a customer’s internal system, Icicle gave the team a more standardized way to manage food safety tasks and QA records
The Results: Fewer Clipboards, Less Paper, and Easier Access to Records for Level Ground
For Michael, one of the most immediate day-to-day changes was simple: fewer stacks of paperwork to review.
“One of the biggest ones, and maybe it’s most notable for me because I was the one who dealt with the paperwork after it had all been filled out, I no longer have stacks of paperwork to go through on a regular basis,” he said. “That makes my life much more pleasant.”
But the benefit goes beyond one person’s desk. Production staff no longer have to manage 30 clipboards across the production rooms. Instead, they can use a smaller number of tablets to complete the checklists and tasks they need.
“It makes it a lot easier for the production staff to manage as well,” Michael said. “They don’t have to manage 30 different clipboards across the production rooms.”
Digital records also make it easier for multiple people to access and verify information. Instead of one stack of folders sitting beside Michaels’s desk, records are available to the management team.
“Records are definitely much more manageable,” Michael said. “Rather than just a stack of folders sitting beside my desk, it’s now digital.”
That also helps spread QA/QC knowledge across the team. If Michael is away, other team members can still review records instead of waiting for him to return to a pile of paperwork.
“If I leave for two weeks, I don’t come back to a mountain of paperwork sitting on my desk that I’m the only one who can go through and verify,” Michael said. “Other people can have their eyes on it as quickly as minutes after an inspection’s been done.”
CFIA’s records-keeping guidance highlights the importance of maintaining records that support food safety programs. For Level ground, digitizing those records has made it easier to manage, verify, and share.
Icicle Helps Level Ground Move Food Safety Records into the Digital Age
Level Ground Coffee Roasters moved to Icicle because it needed a more modern way to manage food safety documentation, QA tasks, training records, SOPs, COAs, and audit-ready records.
The company’s old in-house system still had value, but it was reaching its limits. Paper forms and clipboards created extra friction for production staff and extra verification work for QA. Icicle helped Level Ground create a more standardized, accessible system for completing and reviewing food safety records.
For Michael, the difference is clear: less paper, easier verification, better access for the management team, and a more consistent way to train staff on food safety tasks.
When asked whether he would recommend Icicle to others in the industry, Michael said yes. “I would definitely recommend Icicle to other people in the industry,” he said.
The reason comes back to what stood out from the beginning: Icicle was built with food safety at the center.
“I really appreciate the food safety first direction that Icicle goes,” Michael said.
For coffee roasters and food safety manufacturers still relying on paper forms, clipboards, manual COAs, or disconnected QA systems, Level Ground shows what is possible when food safety records are digitized and connected in one platform. For future workflows, Icicle’s supplier management features and broader production management tools can also support more connected operations as teams expand their use of the system.
Ready to move food safety records out of paper binders and into a digital system? See how Icicle’s food safety software can help your team digitize QA tasks, food safety documentation, training records, HACCP plans, and audit-ready records.
FAQ: Food Safety Software, paperless QA Records, and Audit Readiness
1. How can food safety software help reduce paper records?
Food safety software helps food manufacturers move QA checks, SOPs training documentation, COAs, inspection records, and audit documents into a digital system. For Level Ground Coffee Roasters, this helped reduce reliance on paper forms and 30 clipboards, making food safety records easier to complete, review and verify.
2. Can Icicle replace clipboards and manual QA forms?
Yes, Icicle helps teams digitize paper-based QA forms, recurring task, pre-operational inspections, cleaning checklists, training documentation, and food safety records. Instead of managing clipboards across the production area, teams can complete and access through one organized digital system.
3. How does food safety software make audits easier?
Food safety software makes audits easier by keeping important documentation organized and accessible. Instead of searching through stacks of paperwork or folders, QA teams and managers can find food safety records, training documentation, SOPs, COAs, and inspection results more quickly when customers or auditors request them.
4. How does Icicle helps production staff save time?
Icicle helps production staff spend less time managing paperwork and more time focused on production. At Level ground, staff no loner had to manage 30 different clipboards across the production rooms, making daily checks and tasks easier to complete across different machines and production lines.
5. Can Icicle help with SOPs and training documentation?
Yes, Level ground used Icicle to help move standard operating procedures, training documentation, forms, and recurring QA tasks into one digital platform. This made documentation easier to organize and gave the team a more consistent structure for managing food safety workflows.
6. Why is digital recordkeeping useful for QA and management teams?
Digital recordkeeping gives QA and management teams faster access to completed records. Instead of one person reviewing stacks of paperwork, multiple team members can review and verify records shortly after inspections are completed. This helps reduce bottlenecks and keeps food safety information more visible across the team.
7. What kind of return on investment can food manufacturers expect from food safety software?
The return on investment can come from reducing manual paperwork, saving time on records review, improving staff training, simplifying audit preparation, and making QA records easier to find. For Level ground, one of the clearest improvements was reducing the amount of paperwork Michael had to review and making records more manageable for the wider team.
8. Is Icicle suitable for coffee roasters and growing food manufacturers?
Yes. Icicle is suitable for coffee roasters and food manufacturers that need stronger control over food safety documentation, QA tasks, SOPs, training record, COAs, production checks, and audit-ready records. As companies grow and add more production lines, Icicle helps keep food safety records organized without adding more paperwork forms and clipboards.
Ready to Move Food Safety Records Out of Paper Blinders?
Learn how Icicle ERP can helps your team digitize QA tasks, simplify audit preparation, improve food safety documentation, and reduce the time spent managing paper forms, clipboards, training records, SOPs, COAs, and inspection records. Request a demo or speak with an Icicle food manufacturing specialist today.
