HACCP

HACCP has been in use since the 1960s, although it was only officially defined by the World Health Organisation's Codex Alimentarius Commission in the 1990s. Food businesses were advised to implement a HACCP plan after an E.coli breakout in Scotland in 1996 and it became mandatory from 1stJanuary 2006 with the introduction of the Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 on the hygiene of foodstuffs.

HACCP was originally intended to be used as a control system in the United States to ensure food safety on the first manned NASA space missions. It originated in the 1960s and aimed to ensure that food was safe for astronauts to consume before it was sent up into space. It was established by NASA, the Pillsbury Company and the US Army Laboratories.

It was first recommended that all businesses implement a HACCP system in the 1990s. Today, article 5 of Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 states that 'Food business operators shall put in place, implement and maintain a permanent procedure based on the Codex HACCP principles.' This became mandatory as of 1st January 2006.

The HACCP food safety management system has been in use since the 1960s, although it was only given an official definition in the early 1990s and was recommended for use by food businesses after 1996.

A HACCP food safety management system is based on 7 key principles:

• Conduct a hazard analysis
• Determine the Critical Control Points (CCP)
• Establish critical limits
• Establish a system to monitor control of the CCP
• Establish corrective action
• Establish procedures for verification to confirm the system is working
• Establish documentation.

To establish a HACCP system and ensure food safety, each of these principles must be followed, monitored and reviewed regularly.

Prerequisite programmes are the range of fundamental control measures needed in order to produce safe food. Prerequisites are the basics of food hygiene and must be in place before a full HACCP system can be implemented. There is no set number of HACCP prerequisites - the amount will depend on your individual food business. Examples include measures to prevent cross-contamination, hygiene procedures and pest control measures.

Implementing a HACCP-based food safety management system ensures you are complying with Regulation (EC) No 852/2004. A successful HACCP system will also prevent costly food safety incidents, help you to avoid legal action and product recalls, prevent the need for destroying stock, protect the reputation of the business and increase customer confidence.

HACCP food safety management systems are used in all types of food establishments, including food catering, food retail and food manufacturing businesses. HACCP is an internationally-recognised system and the principles are adopted in countries all over the world, including Europe, the USA, Australasia and the Far East.

Planning is essential to ensure that your HACCP system will work efficiently and effectively. The HACCP plan can be linear (where each product in your food business has its own HACCP plan, tracking the product from start to finish) or modular (where each stage of the food production process has its own HACCP plan, e.g. delivery, storage and preparation).

Implementing the HACCP plan means putting the safety controls into practice so that the HACCP plan becomes a fully-working HACCP system. The HACCP plan can be implemented using the 'blanket' approach (where the plan is applied to the entire food system) or the 'staged' approach (where the plan is applied to each individual food process).

The HACCP system should be reviewed on a regular basis, such as annually, plus whenever there has been a change to the process, equipment or ingredients used; if new hazards have been identified; and if there has been an outbreak of food poisoning, a product recall or another food safety complaint attributed to the company.

Principle 7 of HACCP requires accurate records to be kept for each stage of the food safety system. Some HACCP records needs to be kept longer than others, but it depends on what you think is an appropriate time for your business. There is no set time or legal minimum for how long HACCP records must be kept. For example, you may choose to keep records of cleaning schedules for one year and supplier specifications for three years.

All food business operators, plus managers and supervisors in charge of planning and implementing the HACCP system, should be appropriately trained so that they are competent and knowledgeable. Training should also be provided to members of the HACCP team. Obtaining a HACCP certificate shows that you have learnt how to successfully plan, implement and maintain an effective HACCP system that complies with the law.

There is no expiry date on HACCP training certificates although it's recommended that you refresh your training every 3 years to keep up-to-date with laws and procedures.

HACCP applies to all types of food safety hazards, including physical, chemical, microbial and allergenic hazards. If any of these are not carefully controlled then food products may become contaminated and unsafe for the consumer to eat.

A HACCP critical control point is a stage in the HACCP process where it has been identified that control measures are needed in order to eliminate or reduce a hazard. A 'critical limit' is then established and, if reached, preventative action is guaranteed to be implemented.

A critical limit is the maximum or minimum value needed for the control measure at a Critical Control Point in order to prevent, eliminate or reduce a food safety hazard to an acceptable level. Critical Limits separate safe production from unsafe production and establishing them is principle 3 of HACCP.

A control measure is an action that helps to eliminate or prevent a food safety hazard, or reduce it to an acceptable level. Examples include thorough cooking, metal detection, sieving and filtration, use of approved supplied, planned equipment maintenance the segregation of raw, ready-to-eat and allergenic foods.

A food safety management system based on the principles of HACCP should be implemented in all food manufacturing premises. The HACCP system looks at all aspects of food production, from purchase of the initial ingredients to the distribution of the final product: 'from farm to fork'. Food manufacturers should take a training course in HACCP to learn more about how to implement the procedures in their business.

HACCP is an internationally-recognised food safety management that all catering and food production businesses must implement. It stands for 'Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points'. HACCP means that businesses in the food industry need to analyse the potential hazards to food safety in the workplace, put control measures in place, and then monitor the system to ensure food continues to remain safe for the consumer to eat.

The HACCP team may check ovens in the premises as part of their hazard analysis and to learn where controls are needed to maintain food safety. Ovens must operate at the correct temperature to ensure that foods are cooked thoroughly: temperature is a critical control point that must be monitored.

Any premises that handles, serves, makes or sells food must have a food safety management system based on the principles of HACCP. This includes the hospitality industry where food is likely to be prepared and served on-site. The HACCP system for hospitality premises is the same as any other food establishment.

HACCP stands for 'Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points' and is an internationally-recognised food safety management system that helps businesses to identify, evaluate and control the hazards that pose a significant risk to food safety. Having a HACCP plan in place is essential to prevent foods from becoming unsafe for the consumer to eat. It applies equally to food retail, catering and manufacturing establishments.