How do Food Manufacturers Use Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) Plans to Protect Consumers?

How do Food Manufacturers Use Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) Plans to Protect Consumers?

Food safety is important at all levels of the food industry. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one in six Americans get sick from foodborne illness every year. 128,000 people are hospitalized and 3,000 people die from foodborne illness. The Food Safety Modernization Act focuses on preventing food safety problems before they occur. It also helps enforce food safety regulations and helps facilities meet safety and hygiene requirements. But, how do food manufacturers use hazard analysis and critical control point (HACCP) plans to protect consumers?

The Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, requires food production facilities to have a written preventive controls plan. These plans help companies identify, evaluate, and control food safety hazards. The preferred type of plan recommended by the FDA is a Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) plan. An HACCP plan is formed by evaluating food safety hazards in the facility at critical control points. A critical control point is a point during production where a control is needed to prevent or reduce food safety hazards. Some processes at critical control points can include testing ingredients for chemical residues, cooking products to kill bacteria, and refrigerating pre-cooked food to keep new bacteria from multiplying. The HAACP specifies what steps and controls are used to minimize or prevent those hazards. It should also include procedures for monitoring controls, recordkeeping guidelines, and corrective actions. Certain facilities may have modified requirements for their plans or may qualify for exemptions from certain requirements. All facilities must still address potential food safety hazards and monitor preventive controls. Facilities that don’t follow an HACCP plan must choose an approach that is at least as thorough and effective as the HACCP approach.

How Does An HACCP Plan Work?

To comply with FDA regulations and keep food safe, food manufacturers and packagers must follow current good manufacturing practices. Manufacturers must know and follow the current industry recommendations for design, monitoring and control of manufacturing processes and facilities. Manufacturers must keep up with new developments in food safety and implement improvements promptly, even if the laws have not been updated to require these new practices by name. These practices include:

HACCP plans aim to reduce or eliminate three primary types of food safety hazards: biological hazards, chemical hazards, and physical hazards:

For HACCP plans to successfully reduce or eliminate hazards, employees need to follow prerequisite programs and processes at their facilities. These programs can include good manufacturing practices, standard operating procedures, sanitation programs, pest control, allergen control and temperature control.

Critical Control Points

Hazards are controlled at critical control points by properly managing all production steps. This includes:

Corrective Actions

Corrective actions are steps used to identify and fix problems that occur during food production. Corrective actions also used to prevent problems from occurring, or reduce or eliminate the chances that a problem could happen again. Corrective actions can take many different forms, depending on the equipment or food products.

Some examples include:

If a corrective action is needed, it must be performed as quickly as possible to keep unsafe products from being distributed.

Site Cleanliness

Facilities must be kept safe and free of contamination or debris. Good general cleanliness practices include:

Employee Hygiene

Employees must stay clean and healthy to avoid contaminating food. They must:

Facility Controls

Any food production or preparation environment will have controls in place to help keep products safe for consumption. Some controls are part of the facility’s design, while others will require employees to wear specific clothing or perform certain actions to keep the food products safe. Some facility-based controls include:

Personal Protective Equipment

Personal protective equipment, or PPE, will generally include:

As part of their hazard analysis, facilities must audit their HACCP plans and other food safety programs on a regular basis. Food safety audits review and examine food safety processes and procedures to make sure that safety measures are still adequately protecting food. Facilities will perform audits as part of their standard operating practices. An audit may also be performed if an incident occurs during production or distribution, such as a defect in a product from that facility, or a recall notice being issued for a particular food item.

This blog is part of a food manufacturing safety series. For more topics, visit the blogs below:

Listeria Control in Food Manufacturing

Floor and Drain Cleaning in Food Manufacturing

Foreign Material Control in Food Manufacturing

Cleaning and Sanitizing in Food Manufacturing

Salmonella Control in Food Manufacturing

How Are Food Manufacturing Workers Protected From Chemical Exposure?

Current Good Manufacturing Practices in Food Production

12 Ways Food Manufacturers Protect Consumers Who Suffer From Food Allergies

Food Defense

Proper Hand Hygiene and Handwashing in Food Manufacturing

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