The HACCP team: Training, goals and responsibilities

HACCP Team goals & responsibilities

The HACCP team has the following goals and responsibilities:

• Conduct a hazard analysis to determine which hazards must be controlled, the degree of control required to achieve food safety, and the combination of control measures required.
• Plan and implement processes necessary to validate control measures and/or combinations of control measures and to verify and improve the food safety management system, for example, iMIS Food.
• Assess changes in the production process that have an adverse effect on food safety.
• Verification of the food safety system.
• Indicate for each process step, including all products, all processes and all elements of the prior program on which they were assessed and justify whether or not a critical control point (CCP or OPRP) exists.
• Verify that the food safety system is within the scope and that the scope includes the entire food safety system.
• Make adjustments to keep the food safety system up to date and correct. Either through verification or validation.
• Managing the training of staff to ensure that everyone has sufficient knowledge of the necessary aspects of food safety.
• Determine and verify the scope.

The hazard analysis also considers the place in the chain and takes into account our suppliers and customers.

It is essential that the HACCP team has sufficient expertise. The expertise and composition of the HACCP team are recorded in the overview of tasks and skills of the HACCP team. With the current composition of the HACCP team, all the necessary knowledge and expertise are available for daily operations. For additional specific information, use is made of QAssurance B.V.

The HACCP team has the approval of management and is supported with the necessary resources, facilities and time where possible.

HACCP meetings

A HACCP team meeting will take place according to a set frequency, assessing, at a minimum, whether:

• The food safety system is current and effective.
• The measures taken have been adequately implemented/adopted.
• New processes and/or products must be or have been assessed.
• Developments with regard to legislation, technology, knowledge, etc. have an influence.
• Incidents or new information related to food fraud or food defense affect us.

In addition, any disasters and exceedances of standards are assessed and possible improvements identified. The realization of formulated goals is assessed and the cause is investigated if goals are not met. Measures are then taken.

Minutes shall be taken of the meetings.

To keep the HACCP team, but certainly, the company informed, management will make every effort to provide all necessary information. This may include:

• New products;
• New raw materials;
• New additives;
• Modifications to the recipe;
• New or modified processes, investments;
• A new location of equipment or environment;
• New suppliers of product or service, new services;
• New customer requirements that need to be translated to the workplace;
• Changes in cleaning and disinfection (method, means, frequency, etc.);
• Possible legal changes or changes in standards;
• Changes in packaging and/or packaging materials;
• Changes in storage or transportation;
• Changes in organization, powers, responsibilities and authorizations;
• Complaints and notifications;
• State of the art, new knowledge and research results;
• New knowledge about food safety hazards and control measures;
• Changes in quality level;
• Objectives;

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