How Haccp Certification Process Work?

A HACCP certification is a document issued to food processors and manufacturers to acknowledge that their team has produced a comprehensive and complete HACCP plan and successfully implemented it. As a food safety management system, your HACCP plan must include a comprehensive collection of documentation and processes for identifying and analysing hazards, as well as limiting, controlling, and monitoring any possible hazards in your food chain.

A HACCP plan must be scientifically based and identify food safety hazards for all food products in a manufacturing company. After building the program, a food safety audit can verify its effectiveness. Once approved, a HACCP certification is granted, proving a business's global competitiveness in food safety and demonstrating an excellent food safety management system to customers.

The Steps in Preparing of HACCP Certification

The HACCP certification process is done by the auditing and preparation. After completing the HACCP documents, personal HACCP auditor training and HACCP internal audit are part of the preparation and done before the third-party accreditation.  Food safety management systems are in place. The following are the steps involved in preparing for HACCP certification and the actual audit.

Prerequisite Programs (PRP)

A HACCP plan is built on the fundamental food safety principles of PRPs. These programs are frequently related to your team's sanitation routines, facility design, hygiene practices, and other preliminary duties for preventing food contamination. A HACCP audit plan will often include verification of the building layout, equipment, and plant design. Basic hygienic habits such as personal hygiene, hand washing facilities, and educational visual aids are also necessary.

Some PRPs that you should be aware of are:

• Current Good Manufacturing Practices
• Sanitation Standard Operating Procedure
• Pest control management
• Personnel Sanitation

A Strong HACCP Plan

A HACCP plan benefits all food processors and manufacturers, whether they are new to the industry or long-term business owners. Each HACCP food safety plan is designed for a specific product or procedure. This means that you'll need to tailor your HACCP strategies to each product. The use of HACCP by food processors and manufacturers complies with numerous food rules and laws in multiple nations. Because HACCP is a globally recognised system, it may apply to your foreign suppliers or customers.

Preparing a new HACCP plan requires several hours of meetings with your HACCP team. You must create an initial strategy by outlining the major features of your product, its distribution routes, intended application, and the process using a flow diagram. These are the processes required to create a proper HACCP plan for detecting risks, establishing critical limits, monitoring protocols, and corrective actions.

The primary goal of a HACCP plan is to predict where food safety hazards are most likely to arise during the food production process. A HACCP strategy must maintain a preventive nature, which should be obvious in your records.

The HACCP Certification Process

The entire auditing process begins with selecting a third-party auditing body, which might be a voluntary certification body for food auditors under the Accredited Third-Party Certification program. When picking an auditor, always ensure that they have the proper qualifications and are licenced to perform the audit. This screening process assures that your auditor is qualified to analyse your manufacturing process.

Food production audits typically take place in two stages. The first stage occurs when all needed audit documents have been submitted. Typically, at this step, the auditor assesses your preparedness by comparing the HACCP documentation you provided to the actual standards in your food safety management system.

During this stage, an auditor will recommend areas for continual improvement. The second step of auditing is more in-depth. During this phase, your management system will be evaluated. This stage may involve the following activities:

• On-site inspection of your food processing facility
• Interviews with food workers about your processing and food safety practices
• Assessment of workers' food safety training program on food hygiene and risk management
• Review records of monitoring hazards, execute corrective steps to maintain standard acceptable levels, and comprehensive verification methods.
• Inspect monitoring equipment utilized for crucial control points, as well as the effectiveness of the process, storage area, and working environment.
• Check to see if all food safety rules are up to date with your local laws and regulations.

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