Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) is a systematic approach to food safety. HACCP is an industry-wide effort designed to improve food safety, especially in retail establishments. The HACCP system deals with a range of existing and potential biological (pathogens), chemical, and physical hazards.

Everyone – from the farmers to the food servers – is responsible for the safety of their food products. Taking a systems approach involves looking at each step of the food handling and preparation process. It is a preventive and proactive maintenance plan rather than a fix-it-when-it-breaks approach. It is essential to be proactive instead of reactive with food safety in order to reduce the chance of food-borne illnesses and protect the quality of food safety products.

The government is very serious about HACCP, and this has caused Americans to become increasingly concerned with food safety as well. Incidences of food-borne illnesses are receiving more and more attention as consumers are becoming more aware of new potentially dangerous food hazards.

The operating principles of the HACCP system can be applied to any food chain activities and to any size business. The seven HACCP principles are:

1. Conduct a hazard analysis. Prepare a list of steps in the process where significant hazards occur and describe the preventive measures.
2. Identify the Critical Control Points (CCP) in the process.
3. Establish critical limits for preventive measures associated with each identified CCP.
4. Establish CCP monitoring requirements. Establish procedures for using the results of monitoring to adjust the process and maintain control.
5. Establish corrective action to be taken when monitoring indicates that there is a deviation from an established critical limit.
6. Establish procedures to verify that the HACCP system is working correctly.
7. Establish effective record-keeping procedures that document the HACCP system.

Are you finding that your food service business is afflicted with problems that do not necessarily have an identifiable cause? If so, implementing Root Cause Analysis (RCA) may help. RCA identifies the factors that resulted in the nature, the magnitude, the location, and the timing of harmful outcomes in the past in order to identify which behaviors, actions, inactions, or conditions must be changed in order to prevent recurrence of similar harmful outcomes. Root Cause Analysis also helps to attain better consequences.

In the food industry, there is a need for production-based RCA due to quality control and manufacturing. It is absolutely necessary for your company to incorporate RCA as a tool for continuous improvement if your goal is to always strive to be better and have the highest possible standards.

In order to perform a Root Cause Analysis, begin by defining the current problem. Gather data and evidence, creating a timeline of events that lead to the crisis. Identify the causes associated with each step in the sequence towards the defined problem or event and recognize potential root causes that may have led to the event. Distinguish solutions that are effective and prevent recurrence with reasonable certainty. Also, be certain to obtain a consensus agreement among your fellow employees. Lastly, implement these root cause corrections, and ensure the effectiveness of these solutions by observing the results.

Our trained experts at D.L. Newslow & Associates understand that the process of Root Cause Analysis can be difficult to implement. That’s why we offer training and consulting on RCA. If you are finding that your business is facing problems that you simply cannot deal with on your own, please contact our trained food industry experts at (407)290-2754 today.

According to a press release published on the Business Wire and endorsed by the Institute for Credentialing Excellence, advancement in food science and technology has dramatically changed the food chain system.

A statistic released by the United Nations claims that total food production in the United States alone went from 287 million metric tons in 1965 to more than 674 million metric tons in 2010. Typically, more food means more risk of food-borne illnesses, but the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 48 million people in America got sick in 2011 from food-borne illnesses, a significant decrease from the total of 78 million cases in 1999.

What caused this extreme shift? Improved regulation and oversight from food safety professionals likely prevented almost 30 million citizens from becoming sick due to food-borne illnesses. These professionals monitor the food supply chain to ensure that they are not exposed to conditions that lead to food-borne illness epidemics.

Food safety professionals are trained to enforce rigorous standards set by national agencies such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as well as state and local governments. Organizations such as the National Registry of Food Safety Professionals (NRFSP) can help uphold regulations by maintaining certification programs for food safety professionals, ensuring they have the knowledge to assess whether ingredients, processes, and facilities are safe.

“Food safety professionals are vital in making sure what we eat is safe every step along the way,” says NRFSP CEO Larry Lunch. “Armed with knowledge of federal, state, and local standards and regulations, certified food safety professionals help food producers and retail managers and handlers avoid spreading potentially catastrophic diseases.”

In 2011, the FDA was tasked with creating and implementing new standards and safety systems through the U.S. Food Safety Modernization Act. This act has allowed the agency to shift its focus from responding to contamination to preventing it, and education and enforcement systems have been updated to keep up with food protection standards.

In conclusion, food safety professionals play a vital role in protecting consumers from nasty food-borne illnesses. Through the enforcement of strict standards created by agencies such as the FDA, citizens can feel safe knowing that they are protected against these diseases. Certification programs are essential to saving lives; this is why we at Newslow and Associates offer food safety workshops, consulting, and on-site training. If you are interested in learning how Newslow can help you business make safer food chain decisions, please give us a call today at (407)290-2754.