THE IMPORTANCE OF THE HACCP SYSTEM IN FOOD PRODUCTION
A bit of history about the HACCP system
The HACCP system was developed in the 60’s by Pillsbury, the U.S. Army, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) with the purpose of producing safe products for the U.S. space program. NASA wanted a "zero defects" programme to guarantee the safety of the foods that astronauts would consume in space.
What is the HACCP system about?
HACCP are the initials for Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points.
It is a system of compulsory application intended to identify, assess and control hazards of importance to food safety. With this system, food-borne diseases can be prevented and public health is preserved.
A critical control point is a step/stage of the production process in which control can be applied to prevent or eliminate a hazard or to reduce it to an acceptable level. A hazard is a biological, chemical or physical agent present in foods.
Related to this concept, a risk is the likelihood of occurrence of a potential hazard. Risk analysis comprises three elements: risk assessment, risk management, and risk communication. Risk assessment considers the likelihood and biological and economic consequences of the entry, establishment or spread of a hazard. Risk management is a process where measures that reduce risk levels are identified, selected and applied. Risk communication is the process of exchange and dissemination of information and opinions throughout the risk analysis process.
The effectiveness of the HACCP plan must be verified on an annual basis or whenever structural or technological changes are made or when scientific knowledge is extended or modified to include new hazard control procedures. In Argentina, establishments carry out their own controls and SENASA (Argentina’s veterinary service) is in charge of auditing in the pertinent frequencies.
Steps to implement the HACCP plan
Primarily, establishments must have Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and Standard Sanitation Operating Procedures (SSOP) in place.
Then, they must implement the 12 steps below:
1. Create an HACCP team.
2. Describe the product.
3. Identify the product’s intended use.
4. Construct flow diagram.
5. On-site confirmation of Flow diagram.
6. List all potential hazards associated with each step, conduct a hazard analysis (PRINCIPLE 1), and consider any measures to control identified hazards.
7. Determine critical control points (CCP) (PRINCIPLE 2).
8. Establish critical limits for each CCP (PRINCIPLE 3).
9. Establish a monitoring system for each CCP (PRINCIPLE 4).
10. Establish corrective actions that must be applied when surveillance audits show that a CCP is not under control (PRINCIPLE 5).
11. Establish verification procedures to confirm or verify that the HACCP system is effective (PRINCIPLE 6).
12. Establish documentation and record-keeping systems for all procedures and principle application (PRINCIPLE 7).
All these points are described in detail in the reference websites.
Specifications of each principle
Principle 1. Hazard identification. This principle has the following objectives:
Identifying raw materials and foods that may contain physical, chemical or biological contaminants, as well as conditions that allow germ survival or multiplication.
Identifying points and sources of possible contamination in each step of the food preparation process.
Determining the likelihood of survival or multiplication of microorganisms during the following stages: reception of raw materials, manufacturing process, storage, distribution, consumption.
Principle 2. Determination of critical control points. Its purpose is to determine the points, procedures and operational stages that can be controlled to eliminate or reduce potential hazards to a minimum and, therefore, prevent risks to public health. These critical control points (CCP) are particular to each process and cannot be applied to other processes, not even to the same process under different conditions.
Principle 3. Determination of critical limits. The main purpose is to establish the minimum levels and tolerances that the CCP must achieve to be considered under control.
Specifications may include temperature, time, physical dimensions, moisture, water activity (aw), pH levels, acidity, salt concentration, chlorine concentration, concentration of preservatives, sensory characteristics (texture, flavor, etc.), etc.
Principle 4. CCP monitoring. The aim is to establish a surveillance system to ensure CCP control through scheduled tests and observations with the purpose of meeting three goals:
To ensure risks are under control and to guarantee food safety in all process operations.
To identify a CCP’s deviation (shortcoming in the compliance with a critical limit), for which a corrective measure must be taken.
To provide written documents for the verification of hazard analysis and CCP identification and control.
Monitoring procedures need to be easily and readily applied, effective and capable of detecting any deviation in time to implement the pertinent corrective measures.
Principle 5. Determination of corrective measures. Corrective measures must be clearly defined before implementation and their responsibility must lie with one person only. These measures are useful for the following purposes:
To implement corrective measures upon a CCP deviation.
To determine the destination of the rejected product.
To correct the cause of rejection to ensure the CCP is once again under control.
To keep records of corrective measures implemented upon CCP deviation.
Principle 6. Determination of verification procedures. Tests and additional procedures to verify that the HACCP system is effective and to ensure that a CCP is under control.
Principle 7. Determination of a documentation system. The aim is to establish a documentation system for all procedures and to keep records of all principles and their application.
CONCLUSION - Why is translating these documents important and why should you trust a specialized translator?
The HACCP system is fundamental in the manufacture of safe foods. The establishments that implement it can provide assurances of control at each stage, from raw material reception to consumption, and of compliance with SENASA’s requirements (in the case of Argentina) and the demands of international markets.
To access international markets, establishments will need to present this safety assurance. I know the terminology and the context of this topic, so I will be capable of translating your plan and records correctly, as well as conveying your company’s interest and care in ensuring the safe manufacture of the foods it exports.
If you need to translate any documents on food safety, do not hesitate to request a quote in the Contact section or directly at sofiagalli@headwaytranslations.com.
To learn more about the agri-translations Headway Translations can help you with, you can visit the Headway Agro page. For corporate and accounting documents, you can visit the Headway Business page.
References
SENASA Resolution No. 205/2014 (in Spanish)
SENASA Resolution No. 134/1996 (in Spanish)
FAO Manual (in Spanish)
FAO Manual (in English)
FAO’s HACCP system principles (in English)
FDA Manual (in English)
Safe Food Alliance Guide (in English)
Some related English-Spanish terminology
Control (verb): Controlar
Control (noun): Controlado
Control measure: Medida de control
Corrective action: Medida correctiva
Critical Control Point (CCP): Punto Crítico de Control (PCC)
Critical limit: Límite crítico
Deviation: Desviación
Flow diagram: Diagrama de flujo
Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP): Análisis de Peligros y Puntos Críticos de Control (APPCC)
HACCP plan: Plan de APPCC
Hazard: Peligro
Hazard analysis: Análisis de peligros
Monitor: Vigilar
Step: Fase
Validation: Validación
Verification: Verificación