TheHACCP teammust thenconsider whatmeasures can be appliedto
controleachhazard.
∑ Principle2: Determinethe CriticalControl Points (CCPs). TheHACCP
teammustidentify the CCPsor steps in the production processwherecontrol
can be appliedand is essentialto prevent or eliminate a foodsafetyhazardor
reduceit to an acceptable level.
∑ Principle3: Establish criticallimit(s). A critical limitis defined as a criterion
that separates acceptabilityfromunacceptability. The critical limitmust be
specifiedand validated if possible for eachCCP.
∑ Principle4: Establisha systemto monitor control of the CCP. Monitoringis
the scheduledmeasurement or observationof a CCPrelativeto its critical
limits.The monitoringprocedures mustbe able to detectloss of controlat the
CCP.Further,monitoringshould ideally providethis informationin timeto
makeadjustments to ensurecontrol of the processto prevent violatingthe
critical limits.
∑ Principle5: Establish the corrective actionto be taken whenmonitoring
indicatesthata particularCCPis not undercontrol. Specificcorrective
actionmust be developedfor eachCCPto dealwithdeviationsfromthe
critical limits.The actions must ensurethat the CCPhas beenbrought under
control. Actionstakenmust also includeproperdisposition of the affected
product.
∑ Principle6: Establish proceduresfor verification to confirm that the HACCP
systemis working effectively. Examples of verification activities include
reviewof the HACCP systemand its records,review of deviationsand
product dispositions and confirmation that CCPsare keptundercontrol.
∑ Principle7: Establish documentationconcerningall proceduresand records
appropriate to theseprinciplesand theirapplication. Documentationand
records are essential to demonstrate safe product manufactureand that
appropriateactionhas beentakenfor any deviationsfromthe criticallimits.
Although the use of HACCP is widespread, someof its detailsare relatively
underdeveloped. For example, untilrecentlythevalidationof critical limits,
mentioned underPrinciple3, had receivedverylittleattention. To fill this gap
and provideguidance on howone should validatefoodsafety control measures,
draftguidelineswereprepared by the Codex Alimentarius Committee (CAC,
2004).In these guidelinesvalidation'is definedasthe obtainingof evidence
that the foodhygienecontrolmeasure or measuresselectedto controla hazardin
a foodare capable of consistentlycontrollingthe hazardto the levelspecifiedby
the performance objective'.Thusvalidation of controlmeasures requiresthat
effectivenessis measured againstan expected outcome(for example reduction
of the level ofSalmonellaby 99.999%).
The authorsof the draftguidelinesnotethat in the currentenvironment of
flexibility with the selection of hygiene controlmeasures, the concept of
validation acquires increasedimportance. For manyyearsthe use of mandated
processing conditionswas the mainwayto guaranteefoodsafety,for example
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