The challenge of designing valid HACCP plans for raw food commodities

Abstract

Application of HACCP is now firmly established worldwide as the foremost means of assuring food safety throughout the food chain. However, the genuine application of HACCP principles can be difficult in the design of HACCP plans for raw food commodities. This is especially the case with fresh meat and fresh meat products. In attempting to address these problems, the NZ MAF Regulatory Authority has developed a generic template for design of HACCP plans for slaughter and dressing of domestic livestock, and application of the template using sheep as an example is presented in this paper. Establishment of food safety objectives for the particular segment of the food chain under consideration is important, and the hazard analysis step should individually consider the different components of the raw material (hide, head/offals/carcass, gastrointestinal tract) and their potential for microbiological contamination of the final product. Other tools which facilitate design and application of the HACCP system are special consideration of prerequisite programmes, use of job descriptions for slaughtermen, and a customized decision tree for identification of critical control points. Design and verification of the HACCP plan is enhanced by reference to microbiological ‘targets’ established according to a standardized national microbiological database aggregated from all licensed premises. In the absence of a human health microbiological risk assessment model for particular pathogens that may be present in meat and meat products, the food safety objectives of the HACCP plan will probably be associated with control of hazards rather than control of risks.