DEVELOP HACCP PLAN

Develop HACCP Plan



Develop HACCP Plan

Introduction

There are twelve tasks required to develop a HACCP plan and these are designed to ensure that the seven principles are applied correctly. Principle 1, which is to conduct a Hazard analysis, requires that the first five tasks have all been addressed in a logical and honest manner so that all real hazards associated with the commodity have been identified..

Task 1 - Establish a HACCP team

To fully understand the commodity system and be able to identify all likely hazards and CCPs, it is important that the HACCP team is made up of people from a wide range of disciplines. The team should include (Jarvis, 1987):

A team leader to convene the group and to direct the work of the team ensuring that the concept is properly applied. This person must be familiar with the technique, be a good listener and allow all participants to contribute.

A specialist with a detailed knowledge of the commodity system is required. This specialist will have a major role in the production of the commodity flow diagrams.

Several specialists, each with an understanding of particular hazards and associated risks, e.g. a microbiologist, a chemist, a mycotoxicologist, a toxicologist, a QC manager, a process engineer.

People, such as packaging specialists, raw material buyers, distribution staff or production staff, farmers, brokers, who are involved with the process, and have working knowledge of it, may be brought into the team temporarily in order to provide relevant expertise.

The team's progress and results of the analysis should be recorded by a technical secretary.

If any changes are made to composition or operational Procedures, it will be necessary to re-assess the HACCP plan in the light of the changes. The first activity of the HACCP team is to identify the scope of the study. For example, will the whole commodity system be covered, or only selected components? This will make the task more manageable and specialists can be added to the team as and when they are required (Corby, 1999).

Task 2 - Describe the product

To start a hazard analysis, a full description of the product, including customer specification, should be prepared using a form such as that given in Appendix III. This should include information relevant to safety, e.g. mycotoxin regulation/target level, composition, physical/chemical properties of the raw materials and the final product, the amount of water available for microbial growth (aw), the amount of acid or alkali in the product (pH). Also information regarding how the product is to be packaged, stored and Transported should also be considered together with facts regarding its' shelf life and recommended storage temperatures. Where appropriate, labelling information and an example of the label should be included (FDA, 2001). This information will help the HACCP team to identify 'real' hazards associated with the process.

Task 3 - Identify the product's intended use

How the product is intended to be used is an important consideration. Information on whether the product will be consumed directly, or be cooked, or be further processed, will all have a bearing ...