What is HACCP? 

HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) is a systematic approach to construct a food safety program designed to reduce the risk of foodborne hazards by focusing on each step of the food preparation process--from receiving to service. More information regarding the traditional approach to HACCP may be found at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OPHS/NACMCF/past/JFP0998.pdf. You can find additional guidance on developing a HACCP-compliant food safety program using the references here.

USDA recommends that School Food Authorities (SFAs) use the Process Approach to HACCP because it gives them flexibility to create a program suitable for a variety of situations. The Process Approach categorizes food preparation into three broad categories based on how many times each menu item moves through the temperature danger zone. Heartland School Solutions software follows the USDA recommended Process Approach and allows you to automate many of the complex steps involved in setting up and monitoring a HACCP program.

The overall food safety program must include a written plan for each individual school and be based on Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) principles.

A school food safety program must include the following elements:

• Documented Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) - SOPs serve as a basic food safety foundation and control hazards not outlined specifically in the HACCP plan.
• A written plan at each school food preparation and service site for applying HACCP principles that includes methods for:
  • Documenting menu items in the appropriate HACCP process category
  • Documenting Critical Control Points (CCPs) of food production
  • Monitoring
  • Establishing and documenting corrective actions
  • Record keeping
  • Reviewing and revising the overall food safety program periodically

HACCP Terminology

You will learn some new terms in developing the food safety program and individual school plans.

Hazard analysis: review of your food service operation to find areas where food safety problems might occur.

Control measures: steps you take to reduce the likelihood of food contamination.

Critical control points (CCP): points in food preparation and processing where controlling a step (such as cooking) is essential to assure food safety.

Critical limits: the time and temperature ranges for food preparation and service (either cold or hot) that keep food safe.

Process Approach: a method of grouping menu items into one of three processes depending on the number of times the food goes through the temperature “danger zone,” which is between 41 °F and 135 °F (per the amendment to the 2001 FDA Food Code issued in August 2003).

Standard Operating Procedure (SOP): written instructions for a food service task that reduce food safety hazards.

Building a Food Safety Program

Analyze Menu Items According to the Process Approach to HACCP

Look at your menu items and decide which food items are meant to be: 1) kept cold from preparation through service; 2) prepared hot and served the same day hot; and 3) prepared hot and served cooled, or possibly reheated. These are the preparation categories in the Process Approach to HACCP.

1. Print out the standard Process information from WebSMARTT.
2. Put each menu item (recipe) into one of those three categories in WinSNAP under EZ Views | Item Information | HACCP tab.
3. Make note of any menu items that do not fit into the standard processes. You can group these into similar categories and create new processes for them as needed.

To assign menu items to one of the three processes, consider the processes and procedures used to prepare the food in each of your school district’s facilities. Determine whether menu items have no cook step involved, undergo a cook step for same day service, or receive additional cooling and reheating following a cook step. This will enable you to place each menu item into the appropriate process.

It is especially important to consider all the steps taken when a menu item is prepared at one site and served at another in order to be aware of potential hazards and control for them. A combination of central and satellite kitchens is found in many school districts. In these situations, the SFA must identify and categorize the appropriate overall food preparation process for menu items and also must develop a plan for each site involved in the preparation and service of the item to clarify the responsibilities for each site.

Develop, Document, and Implement SOPs

Control measures are any means taken to prevent, eliminate, or reduce hazards. Collectively, control measures include SOPs as well as the Critical Control Points (CCPs) and the corresponding critical limits established in each of the three processes.

Once you identify the appropriate process for each menu item, determine what control measures are needed to prevent the introduction of hazards at each stage of food preparation from receiving to service. Decide which of the control measures are absolutely essential to ensuring safe food.

The control measures that are absolutely essential must be applied at key points, known as CCPs, during the food preparation process to control specific hazards (physical, chemical, or biological). The control measures used to prevent, eliminate, or reduce hazards in all menu items under each of the three processes are similar.

You must document in writing the CCPs and critical limits for each Process category in your food safety program and in each site plan. Each of the three processes in the Process Approach has specific CCPs, such as, cooking, cooling, hot holding, cold holding, and reheating. The CCPs for each of the processes will remain the same regardless of the menu item. However, the critical limits will vary depending upon the menu item and the recipe used to prepare each item.

SOPs are also control measures and should not be forgotten when using the Process Approach. In addition to the established CCPs for each of the three processes, applicable SOPs should be followed for the preparation and service of all menu items.

Establish Monitoring Procedures

Monitoring is an important step for an effective food safety program. Control measures, including CCPs and SOPs, must be monitored, controlled, and documented in writing. Monitoring involves making direct observations or taking measurements to see that the food safety program is being followed.

Establish Corrective Actions

Whenever a critical limit is not met, a corrective action must be carried out immediately. A corrective action may be simply continuing to heat food to the required temperature. Other corrective actions may be more complicated, such as rejecting food items that were not delivered at the right temperature, or discarding food that has been held without temperature control too long.

Your food safety program must include corrective actions. Employees must know what these corrective actions are and be trained in making the right decisions.

Keep Records

There are certain written records or kinds of documentation that are needed to verify that the food safety program is working. These records will normally involve the food safety plan and any monitoring, corrective action, or calibration records produced in the operation of the food safety program based on HACCP principles. Recordkeeping also provides a basis for periodic reviews of the overall food safety program. In the event your operation is implicated in a foodborne illness, documentation of activities related to monitoring and corrective actions can provide proof that reasonable care was exercised in the operation of your facility.

Maintain records of cooking, cooling, and reheating temperatures and other CCPs in the food preparation process. Keep documentation as simple as possible to make recordkeeping easy for employees.

Determine what records must be kept, where to keep them, and which staff member(s) will be responsible for maintaining them.

Some of the types of records that should be maintained include:

• Records documenting the SOPs
• Time and temperature monitoring records
• Corrective action records
• Verification or review records
• Calibration records
• Training logs
• Receiving logs

Review and Revise Your Overall Food Safety Program Periodically

There should be an ongoing as well as a periodic review of the activities described in your food safety program. This step ensures that the food safety program is operating according to what is specified in each school’s plan.

Review and revise your food safety program at least annually or as often as necessary to reflect any changes in your facility. These may include new equipment, new menu items, reports of illness or comments on health inspections, or other factors that indicate how well your food safety program is working. Determine who will review the current plan, when it will be done, and how it will be documented.

Note: Before attempting to use the HACCP feature, you must download a data package from Compass with initial Processes, Operational Steps, Food Safety Checklists, and Critical Control Points. Before you download this data package, the HACCP feature is essentially non-functional.