Lecture Wageningen University: Food Safety Compliance

Introduction to Food safety quality management

A group of approximately 50 second-year Food technology students of the Wageningen University have attended the class. A study where students learn about, natural sciences, food processing, nutrition, consumer behaviour, and product development as well as quality management. As some of these students will end up as future quality managers, food safety consultants, or auditors it is important that they understand the practical fundamental of Food Safety compliance. Furthermore, if the students end up in a different department, or somewhere else in the food chain, it is essential to know how the products are produced and which legislations and criteria are in place.

The lecture

On the 30th of May 2022, Cees introduced Food Safety Compliance, by addressing practical examples. The lecture did not cover the traditional topics in food safety. For example, understanding of the Food Safety theory, knowledge of bacterial growth, Aw and pH content heating temperature, and how to deal with other hazards. The lectures had a practical scope. It is important to understand that you work with people, thus management skills need to be in place to change the Food Safety culture and create a consistent learning environment. When a systemic behaviour change is in place the Food Safety is improved within the food company in all departments, as well as, the company is prepared to deal with constant changes, in the value chain. There are 400 legislation changes in a year, changing food safety certification criteria thus this knowledge is crucial. Furthermore, suppliers, laboratories, Food Safety authorities, retailers customers, and consumers can be very demanding and evolve with new requirements.

Lecture content

The lecture content can be found on the following link with extra links that could be useful for a student. If you have more questions about the company you can always contact us.