What food requires a HACCP plan?

A HACCP plan is a document prepared under the principles of the HACCP system in such a way that its compliance ensures the control of the hazards that are significant for food safety in the segment of the food chain (OIRSA, 2016). But can we apply a HACCP plan throughout the food chain?

Although everyone who produces food is responsible for enforcing it, applying a HACCP plan is different.

A control measure is an activity used to reduce or eliminate the probability of food contamination in any segment of the food chain. We can use the HACCP plan's scientific basis as a reference tool to assess hazards and establish control measures in the production chain. However, to create a HACCP plan, all food components must comply with hygiene principles such as good agricultural, livestock, and manufacturing practices. Therefore, these bases are considered prerequisites in the HACCP plan. In other words, primary food production: fruits, vegetables, fattening cattle, broiler chicken, egg for plate, honey, and milk are products that do not have any transformation, do not require a HACCP plan, but if we could use some of these products as ingredients, they need to apply a HACCP plan.

Let's review some examples:

• A company wants to market ready-to-eat meat patties. The ingredients are ground beef, onion, salt, and oil. Through a hazard analysis, the company must identify the possible risks of contamination and indicate to its suppliers the implementation of good practices as part of the prerequisites of the HACCP plan. In addition, it is necessary to identify the critical control points in cooking and baking.
  
• In a second example: a marketer of frozen meat fillets asks the supplier to apply Good Livestock Practices. Afterward, the marketer will implement control measures in the production of the HACCP plan. Once the security of this implementation is in place, hazard analysis of the process should be carried out by implementing control measures in the filleting, packaging, and freezing to carry out a HACCP plan.
  
• Another situation in which we can see HACCP plans in action is pet food. Pet food has become an issue of great importance in both pet safety and quality. Unfortunately, pets can also get sick from the food they consume, so these companies must ask their vendor of supplies to implement good practices and, in their HACCP plan, identify possible risks of contamination such as the conditioning and hydration process.
  
• We can also implement the HACCP plan in the aviation industry as it must not minimize the likelihood of its passengers and crew getting sick. The same goes for the Space and Aeronautics Administration, as it would be impossible to care for the team due to illness in space. HACCP plans throughout the food chain are applied either as a prerequisite for primary production (such as fruits or vegetables) or as a modified product (such as packaging, transformation, or modification of food). The food industry requires a HACCP plan to ensure that their production is being monitored to prevent contamination during production, handling and transportation. With this, its commercialization will benefit, therefore the client will feel much calmer when consuming them.

Rebeca Macazaga Álvarez, Master in Biological Sciences.
“I collaborate in the Restaurants team in the development operating procedures for companies that want to implement HACCP systems. I have experience in the food safety area since 2008,  in hazard analysis, training, implementation, and second-party audits.”