Food Safety Knowledge – X��°

What is Single Sign On and why do we offer it?��

Fri, 17 May 2024 10:24:14 +0000

Since the initial launch of the X�� platform we have always had a staunch and steadfast commitment to security and privacy. ��

This commitment has taken many shapes over the years and has been realised in many different ways in the SF360 platform.��

Indeed, for more than 180 years, security has also been at the heart of our parent company, LGC, which was founded to test the authenticity of, initially tobacco, and later food imports into the United Kingdom.��

Knowing the authenticity of a product, and validation of that claim, is itself a form of security as it gives peace of mind that things are as they should be.��

we have benefitted from many different synergies and resources.��

To an external eye, some of these benefits and changes are more evident than others.��

Behind the scenes, however, one of these synergies has been access to the deep and expansive knowledge that exists across the LGC group from PCQI’s and QA to business analysts, data engineers, and great minds in legal and corporate governance. ��

To this end, over the last 4 years we have been vigorously and continuously refining and improving our platform to ensure we offer an optimum product that suits a vast array of needs and gives peace of mind where it is needed.��

During this time we introduced a new Microsoft customer identity access management platform (CIAM) into Safefood – called ADB2C. This is a safe and scalable authentication system solution capable of supporting millions of users and automatically handles cyber threats such as denial of service, password spray and brute force attacks.��

This has proven very popular since we integrated it several years ago but it’s not the only choice for our customers. We also have another option that is more favourable for some of our clients – called Single Sign On.��

What is Single Sign On?

Single Sign On, or SSO, as its typically called, is an important part of cloud security that very simply, makes life easier for your administrators by reducing various user logins across systems to one master username and password.��

Essentially, it is a universal key that can be used to open all platforms a user needs, while allowing your administrators greater control of all the accounts and user roles in your organization.��

Using this, you, as the user, only need to log in once at the beginning of your day, and you will instantly have access to X�� and any other systems you configure through SSO to work.��

That means no more password resets or frustration when you make a mistake – just direct access so you can focus all your attention to the task at hand.��

If you are unfamiliar with this, you may be thinking what’s the catch, or in a growing world of importance on security, data protection and privacy, why would you not want your systems air-gapped from each other?��

The answer is quite simple, and we’ll go into the complex later, but essentially SSO provides your IT business partners with peace of mind that every user account is genuine as it provides greater traceability of accounts over the system, so no old accounts remain active long after the business need for it has ceased.��

It also gives your administrator team direct control over access criteria, so you can eliminate dependencies on a specific vendor, and enable a zero-trust security policy as well.��

In short, think of SSO like a bouncer to a nightclub – where the ID only needs to get checked once at the door and then the customer is free to order drinks – without SSO, the customer would need to verify their age each time they are at the bar, slowing up service, increasing the risk that someone may be underage or be refused, ultimately and decreasing the quality of service for everyone.��

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Benefits of SSO

For the reasons already listed above – SSO is more convenient and creates a better experience for everyone.��

As people only need to be concerned with remembering one form of ID, you can make this stronger as it does not need to be repeated.��

Think of a hall pass in school versus a passport.��

Hallpasses can be issued frequently in line with changing demands, and typically are just a piece of paper with a stamp that can be forged versus a passport which has holograms, barcodes, serial numbers, signatures and other devices.��

While a passport is difficult to forge, access is more immediate as being in possession of it, means the document is more trusted – and no additional verification is needed.��

Both control your ability to travel, but one needs to be reissued constantly and checked, while the other is more durable, trusted, and can be used for a longer period of time without maintenance. ��

Although it is always advised to not use specific words or patterns in passwords, people are human and sometimes cut corners. By cutting down on the number of passwords in use – it’s less likely that a specific one may be spoofed or guessed – and as such, another security measure is present.��

When your team do need to log on – they don’t need to think about it; and neither do your administrators.��

Lastly, your IT team can benefit from one master list which they can deploy and modify systems access in real time with – this means like the rest your X�� system, that you will benefit from a singular version of the truth where all information flows across the different verticals of the business where it is needed, but most importantly, that this information correlates and matches when there is duplication.��

Talk to us to learn more

If you are an existing customer we would be happy to talk to you or your technical teams about your SSO environment and what supports you need from us to enable this in your environment.��

If you are not a customer though, we’re also happy to speak with you about how this is just one small piece of a much larger digital transformation project that we can help with you.��

We offer off-the-shelf and custom solutions to food manufacturers of all sizes from single site manufacturers to some of the larger brands you may be familiar with such as Carlsberg, Publix, DSM-Firmenich, Upfield, Wegmans, Royal FrieslandCampina,�� Jacobs Douwe Egberts and much more.��

Whether you are looking to fully digitally transform your food safety, compliance or operational data, our platform has customizable solutions which can fit your need.��

If you would like to see how and have your questions answered, simply click the button below and get in touch where a member of our team will explain more.��

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Alcoa+ Principles: What can the food industry learn from life sciences

Mon, 15 Apr 2024 13:07:47 +0000

No matter where you are based, the global food manufacturing industry must comply with strict regulatory requirements, retailer demands and legal frameworks.

While the nuances of each of these asks may vary, compliance to their principles and quality standards to mitigate risk are at the heart of every action in food safety.

In this regulated landscape, maintaining data integrity is paramount, not just from a business perspective, but more importantly, ethically, it is needed to ensure that manufactured products do not cause any threat to life.

From the creation of HACCP in the 1960’s up to the modern day, the industry has grappled with evolving demands and how best to demonstrate compliance with them.

It is evident that having a standard and complying with a standard are two different demands, and the fallacy of audits to these requirements are that they present a moment frozen in time, rather than a holistic view of the real-world application of any management system.

Where records are created, they are often paper-based and islands unto themselves, presenting a microcosm of what happened on that specific day, at that specific time, and too often, do not help us determine greater learnings.

GFSI compliant schemes like , (Safe Quality Food), and IFS allow us to standardize the questions we ask of our data and uncover learnings, however, as these are ultimately industry-led, is the question worth asking, do these ask enough, or rather to be more specific, do their outputs of complying with them enable us to ask the right questions?

To answer this, this blog proposes a thought-experiment of looking at what learnings we can derive from another highly regulated industry, specifically the pharmaceutical industry.

What is ALCOA+

ALCOA+ is a set of principles designed to ensure data integrity in the pharmaceutical industry but has also become commonplace in other related healthcare and bioscience related spaces.

Quite simply, data integrity is ensuring the “completeness, consistency and accuracy of data” (Source, Page 2 ) and ALCOA+ is a means to achieving that.

Originally introduced by the US Food and Drug Administration with a condensed scope of ‘ALCOA’, it has since expanded to include the ‘+’ and its principles can be applied to manufacturing, clinical research, testing, validation, and supply chain compliance.

In addition to evolving, the use of ALCOA+ principles have also spread and impacts how these sectors approach GMP (Good Manufacturing Practices) as well.

ALCOA is an acronym which means that a document should be something which is:

Attributable
Legible
Contemporaneous
Original
Accurate

Further to this, the ‘+’ refers to documents that are also:

Complete
Consistent
Enduring
Available

To ensure we have a fuller understanding of each point before we consider what learnings the food industry can take from this framework, we must briefly provide an explanation for each:

Attributable

While anonymous data can be used, such as in instances of whistleblowing, to apply learnings, we must understand the context in which the data was generated.

When we say that something is attributable, therefore, we are meaning that the origin of the data itself, be it manually created by a person or automatically generated by a sensor or machine reading, is identified as well as the time and date that the measurement was taken.

While the idea of this is nothing that will be new to any reader, there are vulnerabilities that we may not consider if the necessary security provisions are not applied.

Systems that allow anonymous access, or password sharing between members of a team can expose a business to falling at the first hurdle here and disqualifying the data from being attributable.

Legible

If your company is still using manual systems, it likely is still doing so with printed forms and checklists.

While this will structure the data, it is still potentially illegible depending on the cursive skills of the person who completed the record, or indeed, the type of paper being used.

Today, in many factories around the world, paper-based records are still commonplace and in use, so it is wise to take precaution and consider the type of materials we use.

Simple things like pen thickness can impact legibility, and if your factory deploys carbon paper to improve record keeping, the thickness of sheets should be considered as simple things like the digits ‘8’ and ‘3’ can easily be confused with the degradation of each copy.

Naturally, digital systems negate many of these potential pitfalls from the off and ensure that data can be read, however, even these systems must consider their place against other ALCOA considerations.

Contemporaneous

It is critical that the records you are keeping are reflective of the moment that they are pertaining to capture.

This means data should strive to be caught when it was generated or as close to the observation as possible, so that they reflect an accurate and complete picture of circumstance.

If a record is retroactively ascribed, it is possible that details may be forgotten or neglected to be included.

While one detail may be trivial and matter in the total picture of things, if left unchecked, these can quickly compound and create an issue.

This then means that future comparisons of current data against past data may be at odds and not able to be reconciled.

Further compounding this can be a potential risk of unchecked or unknown bias, where data being sampled retroactively may skew results if the individual happens to pick samples that are less onerous to test.

Again, software systems help mitigate against this risk with complete record keeping captured at source and random sampling to prevent against bias.

Original

‘Original’ data can also be considered ‘raw’ or ‘source’ data and refers to the data in its purest form at the point of capture.

This data represents a true picture and should be preserved in its original form before any assessment or application is made to the data.

For instance, temperature or sample readings in a monitoring record refer to the original data, and readings that refer to Mass Balance or Weight Averages would be considered additional or meta data.

In a paper-based process, this data can easily be skewed, misinterpreted, or truncated as it is copied from one form or format to another.

A digital system which can capture a higher quantity of digits and thus, more of the “original data” so it avoids things like rounding, resulting in a more complete picture that more accurately represents the true circumstances of output.

Accurate

There is a quote often attributed to Grace Hopper that “one accurate measurement is worth a thousand expert opinions.”

Accuracy is implied across all facets of quality management and underpins every reading we capture.

Over the years as the sophistication of machines, sensors, and indeed our ability to record information has grown – our ability to be more accurate has become pronounced.

The benefits of electronic systems compared to paper in this regard are unparalleled.

Fueled by the acceleration of systems like Hadoop, Data Lakes, Warehouses and indeed, Data Lakehouses, we are now able to capture a large quantum of data and recall it faster than ever.

This means that we can be more precise with machine calibration, maintenance, and proactively predict wear and tear.

The result is that Accurate systems striving for Total Data Quality deliver fundamental value to the bottom line of the business across Statistical Process Controls, Thorough Put, Yield, Waste, Rework, Scrap and knowing our Takt Time.

While the above considerations provide a solid baseline for data principles, they are further complimented and enhanced by the ‘+’ which includes four more areas which can be applied to create a more robust data strategy.

Complete

There is a theory that it is not just the data for product spec that we wish to capture that we should – but rather all original data and metadata should be collected as well.

This means that the ‘golden thread’ of data covers as absolute a picture as possible and can be reconciled against one another.

This includes retests, environmental data, batching details from lot number to time of goods-forward, audit logs, sensor readings, etc.

Consistent

Record keeping must be equal in its application.

Where possible, readings should occur to a defined and rigorous schedule, recorded in the moment and any deviations from the process monitored so that its effect on the captured data can be considered.

This is a principle that is quite tricky for humans and manual systems to adhere too, as variation is all but inevitable as front-line employees work at different speeds or have ad hoc tasks to perform in any given day.

As such, outsourcing, and capturing this at source in an electronic record, can give additional peace of mind.

Enduring

Retention of records and their availability to be accessed upon demand is ital.

A strong history of data capture that is archived and inaccessible is of no use as it cannot stand the test of time.

Vendors who provide systems must also ensure that access is uninterruptable, and the right redundancies are in place.

This is why Safefood like many vendors, includes automated daily data backup, multiple records across dispersed geographical servers and best practice disaster/recall recovery support.

Available

Last, but certainly not least, data must be available to all – or at least those that are in position to use it to drive continuous improvement.

It is of little merit or value to execute the above principles only to have the data locked in an environment where it cannot be used to help enhance processes.

If the data is available to everyone, it may overwhelm, cause confusion, or indeed, potentially compromise intellectual property or competitive edge.

Putting appropriate safeguards in place that protect the extent to which this data can be accessed and retrieved can be easier with software systems rather than needing to have manual security in place to protect or monitor specific areas of your facility.

How to apply ALCOA+?

Depending on where your facility and personnel are starting from, the best way to apply the above principles is likely to divide them amongst the relevant stakeholders with separate projects for each.

A GAP assessment of current status can be a good starting point, as it will reveal gaps from your ‘as-is’ to its ‘should-be.’

Once the assessment and these potential pitfalls are known to you, you could couple this with a Failure Mode Effects Analysis to quantify the potential risk to the business, and indeed, what costs could be incurred.

The good news is operating and adhering to ALCOA+ with manual systems can be done, however, it does require ongoing maintenance, drive, oversight, and cross department co-operation.

As such, it can often be burdensome on resources and while projects typically start strong, they may decrease in effectiveness as employee churn occurs or manual creep in systems takes place.

The better news is that there are ready-made solutions in the market available today which can help, X�� is one such system.

Our software combines more than 35+ modules which are purpose built for global legislation and technical standards such as GFSI, BRCGS, SQF, FSSC, and ISO22000.

Each of these modules can replace your current systems and brings the different elements of ALCOA+ together so you can remain in step with best practices.

All of our projects are supported by a team of Food Safety Professionals who will take the pain out of a digital transformation and be more than a support to you.

These services include full set up and deployment of all records, programmes, data, and tasks, so your team can remain focused on value added activities and contributing to your company’s bottom line.

Still not sure? Click the button below and contact us to see how.

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Should I implement single sign-on (SSO) for food safety management software?

Fri, 23 Jun 2023 12:44:19 +0000

Should I implement single sign-on (SSO) for food safety management software?

Keeping your food safety handlers’ personal information secure is imperative as a food-related business owner. A significant step in achieving this is by implementing a robust authentication mechanism that secures the personal data of your customers. In recent years, Single Sign-On (SSO) has become popular for businesses looking to enhance customer data security.

In this article, we’ll explore the benefits of SSO and how it can improve the security of your food safety management software across your food-related websites. We’ll also delve into the potential drawbacks of SSO and help you determine whether it’s the right fit for your business.

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What is Single Sign-On (SSO)?

Single Sign-On (SSO) is an authentication mechanism allowing users to access multiple applications with a single login credential. With SSO, users need only log in once to gain access to all applications in the network, eliminating the need to enter login credentials repeatedly. This not only streamlines the login process but also enhances the security of personal data.

Benefits of using Single Sign-On in your food sites:

1. Improved Security

One of the most significant benefits of SSO is improved security. SSO significantly reduces the risk of password-related security breaches, as users must enter their login credentials only once.

2. Simplified User Experience

SSO simplifies the login process for users by reducing the number of times they need to enter their login credentials. This enhances the user experience and improves customer satisfaction, making it a key consideration for businesses prioritising customer experience.

3. Increased Efficiency

Implementing SSO can increase efficiency by reducing users’ time logging into multiple applications. This is especially important for food sites, where network connections or Wi-Fi signals may only sometimes be reliable. SSO can improve productivity and save time for food safety handlers by reducing the time spent logging in.

4. Reduced X�� Costs

With SSO, users are more likely to have less issues with their login credentials, as they don’t need to remember another set of passwords to access the devices & accounts. Thus this reduces the number of support requests related to login issues, ultimately lowering support costs for your business.

Conclusion

In conclusion, implementing Single Sign-On (SSO) can significantly enhance the security and user experience of your food safety management software across your food-related websites. X��° applied ADB2C, powered by Microsoft, to enable our users to access the software seamlessly. If your food safety management software does not support SSO, we recommend submitting a demo request to learn more about how SSO can benefit your business.

If your food safety management software does not support the Single Sign-On, please submit the demo request to understand how it helps your company.

X��° is an innovative software designed by food experts, and it is dedicated to food manufacturers to work for a safer world. for the latest food safety news. If you would like to have more details about how to ensure the food safety of your company, submit a demo request here.

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How do Chemical Hazards occur in the Food Safety Process?

Wed, 14 Jun 2023 12:08:35 +0000

How do Chemical Hazards occur in the Food Safety Process?

A chemical substance can be natural or synthetic. Chemicals can be intrinsic to the food product and can play an important role in food production such as being added for taste and preservation reasons e.g., sodium nitrates. Chemical hazards can also occur in food when they are unintentionally added which causes contamination e.g., pesticide residue. Chemical hazards are associated with a high number of food safety alerts, recall and withdrawals. Chemically contained food can cause immediate health effects on consumers or they may have long-term effects depending on the how long they have been exposed. due to the presence of the chemical ethylene oxide, a pesticide which is not permitted in the European Union (EU). Products part of the recall included ice-cream and it was the additive locust bean gum which was contaminated with the pesticide.

It is important for Food Safety Plan/HACCP plan team members to understand chemical hazards. The team should know the main categories of chemical hazards associated with food and the toxicology of these hazards. This information can then be used to assist in the development of more robust and informed Food Safety plan.

To gain a fundamental understanding of hazards, you can refer to our earlier article: Food Safety Hazard 101

How do Chemical Hazards occur in Different Types of Food Products?

How are Food Allergens and Marine Toxins Categorised as Chemical Hazards?

What are Marine Biotoxins and How do They Occur?

What are the Various Sources and Types of Chemical Hazards in Food Production?

What Measures can be Put in Place to Control Chemical Hazards in Food Production?

Conclusion

How do Chemical Hazards occur in Different Types of Food Products?

Chemical hazards can occur in products in several ways such as they may be naturally occurring, used as part of product formulation, or unintentionally present and can then therefore affect the safety of a product. Toxins for example, are naturally occurring chemical hazards that are produced by animals, plants, and microorganisms. Mycotoxins are specifically produced by fungi/mould and pose as a health threat to humans. Moulds which can produce mycotoxins can grow on food such as dried fruit, nuts, cereals, coffee beans, etc. and most are chemically stable and survive prolonged heat processing and can grow due in inadequate storage. As they are naturally occurring, they can’t be fully avoided. Mycotoxin is an umbrella term and there are hundreds of different mycotoxins having been identified such as aflatoxins. Aflatoxins are produced by species of Aspergillus called aspergillus flavus and aspergillus parasitcus. Aflatoxins are known to be one of the most dangerous natural poisons and are highly toxic and a known human carcinogen associated with increased risk of liver cancer. They occur in foods such as peanuts, tree nuts, rice, corn, animal feed etc. People can be exposed to aflatoxins by eating contaminated plant products like peanuts or by consuming products like meat or dairy products from animals that ate contaminated feed. Even farm workers could by accident inhale dust raised during the moving of contaminated feeds. In on various brands of popcorn kernels sold in Ireland took place due to elevated levels of aflatoxin in the popcorn kernel’s originating in Turkey. Other examples of the many mycotoxins include: Ochratoxins such as Ochratoxin A found in vine fruits such as currants, raisins, and sultanas. Patulin is produced by a variety of moulds, and is found in apple products and mouldy fruits, grains, and other foods.��

How are Food Allergens and Marine Toxins Categorised as Chemical Hazards?

Food allergens should be considered under the chemical hazard category. Under details requirements on conducting a hazard analysis to help identify known or foreseeable hazards. Specifically, when it comes to chemical hazards it details identifying natural toxins, residues such as pesticides residue, unapproved additives, radiological hazards, etc. but also states food allergens under the chemical category.�� Undeclared food allergens are and are a serious health hazard to consumers allergic to the common food allergens e.g. nuts.

What are Marine Biotoxins and How do They Occur?

Marine toxins found in fish and shellfish can cause foodborne intoxication when consumed by humans. These toxins found in seafood which cause poisoning to humans include amnesic shellfish toxin, diarrhoetic shellfish toxin, neurotoxic shellfish toxin, paralytic shellfish toxin, ciguatoxin and histamine. The toxins generally come from algae that the fish/shellfish feed on or from bacteria naturally present in some fish. Scombroid fish poisoning is an illness caused by consuming fish containing high levels of histamine. In 2021 a number of people in Sweden which originated in Vietnam. In the case of histamine poisoning the toxin occurs due to mishandling of the fish such as storing it at incorrect temperatures. Cooking/freezing of fish does not remove the toxins.

Natural toxins can be produced by plants e.g., glycoalkaloids in potatoes, lectins in beans such as green beans, cyanogenic glycosides in apricot seed and flaxseeds, muscarine in some wild mushrooms.

To further understand each type of chemical hazard, you can download our technical datasheet about Chemical Hazards in the food industry.

What are the Various Sources and Types of Chemical Hazards in Food Production?

Chemicals are often intentionally added to products as they are required for purposes such as preservatives, e.g., nitrates and sulphites in meats or they are used for colouring in the product e.g., cochineal and tartrazine etc. These are chemicals that are deliberately added but could be an issue if high levels are added. Chemical hazards can be produced during the processing of a product e.g., acrylamide, benzene, chloropropanols, furan hydrocarbons etc, and they can form as a result of processing the food under certain conditions relating to high temperature, chemical interaction between ingredients and packaging.

Environmental chemical hazards such as dioxins, polychlorinated bipehentyls, heavy metals such as arsenic, cadium, lead, mercury etc., (You can download our technical datasheet to more specific chemical hazard to know more about that)can also cause illness when consumed through food. Arsenic is commonly associated with rice and while it is present in food in low amounts it is the long-term ingestion of inorganic arsenic and high levels of it that cause health issues. In 2021 a recall took place in the USA due to elevated levels of arsenic in rice cereal for babies.

Chemicals residues from agricultural chemicals used in farming e.g., pesticides, herbicides, fertilisers, fungicide etc., and can make their way through the food chain into food products. In 2020 a number of recalls took place in Europe on bagels, crackers, sesame oil, among the few products, due elevated level of Ethylene oxide in Sesame Seeds originating in India. Ethylene oxide a pesticide which is classed as a mutagen, carcinogen, and reproductive toxicant by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA). It has been banned in the EU since 1981. Ethylene oxide does not pose a significant risk in small quantities however, there is an increased risk if foods containing the chemical are eaten over long periods of time. Veterinary drugs are used to control and prevent illnesses in animals, e.g., antibiotics. Residues of these drugs can potentially be found in food products above the required limits.

During food production chemical contamination can occur when food comes into contact with a surface that has been cleaned with a cleaning agent but not rinsed correctly. Oils and lubricants used in the maintenance of food processing equipment can also potentially contaminate food due to adequate use or inadequate cleaning.

Chemicals could be added to food intentionally to cause harm i.e., a food crime or adulteration of a product with a chemical for economically motivated reasons.�� The melamine was used to give the diluted milk the appearance of containing higher protein content. The addition of the melamine caused kidney issues in children and even some babies died.

What Measures can be Put in Place to Control Chemical Hazards in Food Production?

Clearly, there are many ways chemical toxins can enter our food but what measures can be put in place to stop and/or reduce this happening? Firstly, the control measures will be determined by the specific chemical hazards identified in a hazard analysis.

Before ingredients arrive to a manufacturing facility, control should begin in the field to reduce chemical hazard contamination and a number of measures can be put in place for example Good Agricultural Practice (GAP) measures.�� The measures are there for number of reasons including safe food production. For example, use of antibiotics/hormones can be minimised and not feeding certain animals by-products to livestock and of course in different regions there is local policies/regulations in place.�� Facilities need to prevent/reduce chemical hazards in the facility by establishing an effective chemical control program. The facility should identify all potential chemical hazards (this is the purpose of a HACCP of course) such as the chemicals mentioned previously and put in place controls where required e.g., if one of your ingredients is nuts then aflatoxin would be a hazard to identify.�� When it comes to a manufacturing facility buying in ingredients, they can take steps to ensure what they are buying is compliant with regulation. Food manufacturing facilities should have a supplier approval process to assess and approve suppliers and ingredients, and part of this is requesting documentation such any , letters of guarantee, organic certs etc. and by requesting for ingredients allows verification that certain chemical hazard levels are within regulatory limits e.g., heavy metals such as arsenic. Collecting information from suppliers on the ingredients they supply can help reduce chemical hazards for example if you are purchasing fish, you can study the area the fish was farmed/caught and see if the waters are known to be polluted, as polluted water can lead to heavy metals in fish. An incoming inspection programme for ingredients could include testing e.g., grains incoming to the facilities could be tested for aflatoxin levels, moisture, and water activity to confirm they are within the required levels to ensure no growth of a hazard could occur while stored at the facility. If purchasing ingredients such as fruit and vegetables washing them will reduce residues such as pesticides residues and of course general visual checks on the quality of the fruit and vegetable for example older potatoes maybe be sprouting and sprouting potatoes contain glycoalkaloids as mentioned previously.�� It’s important to identify if a chemical hazard may be produced/enter the product during the processing of it or even after processing during storage. For example, as mentioned previously cleaning chemical residue could enter a product if there is inadequate cleaning of equipment. To prevent cleaning chemicals/residues in a product, chemicals should be labelled and stored correctly, instructions on using chemicals clearly followed e.g., the contact time and temperature etc. Staff should be trained on chemical hazards and how to handle food and chemicals to avoid contamination issues etc. If chemical additives are added to products for preservation purposes, proper batching procedures should be followed to ensure only the correct amounts are added to product. Verification of batching documentation along with review of recipes with additives should take place to ensure regulations are met. Good storage practices of ingredients and finished products should be in place for example mycotoxins, as mentioned previously, can occur in grains if moisture levels are not controlled or in seafood scrombotoxin can occur if not stored at the correct temperatures.�� Some chemical hazards become an issue when they are found in food over the established legal limits and different countries will have requirements and limits. Chemical testing plays a significant role in ensuring food is within required limits. Many chemical toxins are not visible and therefore for testing is important for detection. An allergen management programme will help manage food allergens. For example, having proper hygiene practices/procedures can reduce cross-contamination, proper labelling /storage of materials to reduce accidental contamination and proper labelling procedures for finished products to ensure the correct allergens are identified.

Conclusion

Chemical hazards can come from a variety of sources as mentioned throughout this blog, and this means chemical contamination can occur at any stage in the food chain from farming, slaughtering, processing, cooking, storage, etc. This makes eliminating them challenging but it is critical that food facilities conduct a hazard analysis to ensure that the minimum levels of chemical contaminants end up in the food being produced. At each step in the process chemical hazards should be identified, a risk assessment needs to be completed with justification for determining the severity and likelihood of the hazards, and details on the preventative measures in place need to be developed within the food safety plan. Food safety teams should regularly monitor operations especially those with a significant risk for chemical hazards.

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How do Physical Hazards Occur in the Food Safety Process?

Tue, 30 May 2023 19:59:18 +0000

How do Physical Hazards Occur in the Food Safety Process?

In the food manufacturing world, we come across the word hazard daily, one type being physical hazards. We strive to prevent these physical hazards (You can download specific physical hazards by category in our Datasheet) from entering our food chain and into our processes to ensure that we deliver products of the highest food safety and quality to our consumers. However, there are still many recalls worldwide due to physical hazards entering the food chain and potentially causing harm to consumers, such as cuts to the mouth, throat, or intestine, broken teeth or choking. We will delve further into how they can enter the food chain and how we can try and prevent this from happening.

What are the Physical Hazards in Food?

Common Physical Hazards: A Closer Look

How do Physical Hazards Occur in the Food Safety Process?

Physical Hazard Prevention: A Step-by-Step Guide

What are the Physical Hazards in Food?

Physical hazards in food have often been defined as foreign objects or foreign materials present in foods and can vary in nature. They can either be defined as being naturally occurring in foods, also known as intrinsic, for example, bones or shells. We then have those unintentionally introduced to food like extrinsic hazards such as plastic, glass and metal, which more than likely get into the food through the food manufacturing processes.

According to the , “Physical hazards are broadly classified as sharp hazards, choking hazards, and conditions of animal food hazards such as size and hardness. Injuries from physical hazards may include oral cavity damage (e.g., tooth damage or laceration of the mouth or throat), laceration or perforation of the gastrointestinal tract, and choking.”

This means there is a wide range of physical hazards that needs to be controlled, which is not always easy, but having the right procedures and processes in place will make it much easier to prevent these hazards from causing serious harm to our end consumer.��

Common Physical Hazards: A Closer Look

Physical Hazard	Source/Reason
Glass and Metal Pieces	Originates from broken or damaged equipment or machines at manufacturing facilities.
Plastic Fragments	Commonly found due to wide usage in all process stages, from utensils to packaging materials.
Bone and Shell Fragments	Natural components of meat, fish, poultry, and egg products. Must be carefully removed during processing.
Stones, Pebbles, Soil	Can enter food items such as fruits and vegetables, being part of their natural growing environment.
Pests and Insects	Can directly contaminate food, or introduce other hazards like feathers or droppings if proper sanitary procedures are not followed.
Jewellery and Personal Items	Can originate from employees involved in manufacturing. Companies need procedures to control items like jewellery, medication, or band-aids in the production area.

Let’s investigate specific hazards and how they can enter the food chain.

Glass and Metal pieces or fragments are one of those physical hazards that can really cause the consumer serious health consequences. Glass and metal usually originate from a piece of equipment or machine that has been broken or damaged. In some cases, some food manufacturing facilities even ban glass from the site to prevent this hazard from getting into the product.

Plastic is a very common source of contamination as it is widely used in all process stages. Whether this be hard plastic from utensils or soft plastic from packaging materials, it can be very easy for this type of hazard to be present in food due to the various stages in the process it is used.

Bone and Shell fragments are natural components of meat, fish, poultry, and egg products.�� As they occur naturally in the food, the processing methods must remove these as best as possible to ensure nothing is left behind.

Stones, pebbles, soil, and other components of the natural environment can easily make their way into food items such as fruit and vegetables as they are part of the environment in which these sorts of foods grow.

Pests and insects themselves can be known as a physical hazards, for example, an insect found in salad leaves but not only this, these types of hazards can actually introduce other physical hazards such as feathers or droppings onto food items and packaging if the correct GMP and sanitary procedures are not adhered to.

Jewellery and personal items can originate from employees involved in the manufacturing process, whether this be items such as jewellery, medication, or band-aids. It is essential that all personnel are trained on personal hygiene procedures and that companies have procedures in place for employees who need to have medication or jewellery on site for medical purposes, and this needs to be controlled. Band-aids that have been given out should be counted and reconciled at the end of every day to make sure that none have reached their way into the finished product.

On our Datasheet page, you can access and download individual datasheets that provide information about the hazards mentioned.��

How do Physical Hazards Occur in the Food Safety Process?

Physical hazards can occur at any stage in the food chain from harvesting, processing, packing and distribution. They are often the result of poor procedures and practices, inadequate adherence to procedures and environmental factors. In this next stage we will look and see how these hazards can make their way into the foods we eat.

If we look at the start of the food chain, farming and agriculture are up there when it comes to the origin of many physical hazards. Firstly, pests and insects live in the natural environment around us, and it is inevitable at times that they will creep into the food and end up on the consumer’s plate. Insects are commonly found on vegetables, for example, salad leaves and due to the nature of the product being leafy and layered, some insects can find hiding places. We have mentioned why leafy green always recalls and suggested what food businesses can do about it. Soil and sand are also another physical hazard that similarly to insects are naturally found on fruits and vegetables and it is important that if these products are being sold as ready to eat then they are washed, and any soil is removed prior to being put on the shelf for consumers. Last but not least, one of the most common physical hazards originating from the natural occurrence are bones or shells from meat, fish or egg products. These types of hazards are naturally occurring in these types of products so it is not always easy to make sure that these are 100% removed which is why in some cases companies even state on the labels of packaged products that “Although all care has been taken to remove bones some may remain”, this is evidently due to the fact that these are intrinsic to the product and unfortunately it cannot always be guaranteed that any process would remove these.

The next stage in the food chain is when food is delivered to manufacturing and processing facilities to go through specific processes to make them into the finished product. During this time, foods can go through such long and lengthy processes that there is many an opportunity for physical hazards to enter the products.

Let’s start with packaging materials, packaging is one physical hazard that is tricky to prevent from making its way into the food, this can happen if the packs of raw material are not opened or decanted correctly, and materials such as plastic can tear off and get mixed among the food.

As the manufacturing process moves on then food comes into contact with different types of equipment and utensils. In most cases these kinds of physical hazards would be metal or hard plastic from equipment, machines, utensils or even from personnel. This can happen if there is ware and tare over time and if equipment is not maintained correctly then this increases the risk of these types of foreign materials getting into foodstuff. Glass is also another very serious physical hazard that has potential to invade the consumers food, this can happen if glass gets damaged and if it is too close to open product areas the it can contaminate the food.

Personnel also contribute to foreign material issues, whether that be hair, false nails, PPE such as aprons or gloves or even band aids. This can be a common occurrence especially in those facilities where the manufacturing process is very hands on, for example, RTE sandwiches or salads where there is a lot of manual assembly and packing.

Once the product is packed then we may feel that the product is lower risk and that it cannot become contaminated which is relevant in some instances however, the product is not totally out of the woods yet as during the dispatch stage where there may be a lot of manual handling on trays and pallets it is not impossible for product packaging to get damaged during the storing, dispatch and transport of the goods. This in turn can mean there is still a slight chance that foreign material could end up on or in the product although less likely than during the manufacturing and processing stages.

Physical hazards are a frequent occurrence in the food production process. To avoid food recalls, implementing reliable software can greatly enhance efficiency and offer guidance to streamline your food production chain. If you’re interested in learning more, please send us a demo request, and we can discuss how to optimize your food business and eliminate physical hazards.

Physical Hazard Prevention: A Step-by-Step Guide

We have gone through the types of hazards and how they can into the food chain but let’s see now what preventive measures we can put in place to try and improve food safety and reduce the chance of this happening and how we can implement these as best as possible.

Let’s start again from the beginning of the food chain and see how we can put controls in place that may reduce the chance of food becoming contaminated with these physical hazards. Beginning at the farm or agriculture step, we need to make sure we implement Good Agricultural Practices. There should be regular pest control inspections and checks in place to make sure areas where products are stored are free from any rodent activity especially in farms and other areas of agriculture where these types of pests are more likely to exist. Harvesting and post-harvest handling is important also to check the product for any sign of physical hazards and to remove these as much as possible during quality checks. Correct irrigation techniques should also be used to make sure produce is washed or rinsed in different stages to remove any physical hazards especially those that are harder to see just using the eyes and those hazards such as insects that can make the produce their home.��

According to Commission Regulation (EC) No 2023/2006 good manufacturing practice for material and articles intended to come into contact with food, GMP is defined as “Those aspects of quality assurance that ensure materials and articles conform to quality standards, do not endanger human health or cause an unacceptable change in the composition of the food.”

Good Manufacturing Practices is a major component of preventing physical hazard contamination during the production process, without it there would be many more food recalls and no doubt consumer health consequences. GMP covers a wide range of practices from conducting inspections and checks, training employees, personal hygiene practices and many more. It is essential that GMP is implemented in any food manufacturing facility and that all aspects are trained out to employees and that the procedures are adhered to. Conducting a hazard analysis as part of your food safety plan will help identify where you can put GMP measures in place. For example, you may want to conduct a preoperational inspection every morning to make sure that all equipment such as conveyor belts are free from any foreign material, and this should be checked by a trained employee and verified by QA to make sure it is being done.

In addition to having these GMP checks in place a lot of manufacturing facilities put in place systems such as sieves or filters to be used during the manufacturing process. Some may have automatic detecting systems such as metal detectors or x-rays in order to detect foreign material in finished product. It is important with equipment such as metal detectors that the test pieces used are adequate to detect potential metal within your type of product. Testing is usually conducted at the beginning of production, every hour, after any maintenance or rejects and at the end of production. It usually is also verified by QA if it is a CCP, and they may even do their own daily check to make sure it is up to scratch to detect any foreign bodies present.

This brings us to think about maintenance, maintenance is a critical part of preventing physical hazards, there should be a preventive maintenance schedule in place to ensure that all equipment is maintained in good condition, and this should be done at a set frequency by the maintenance team. Sanitation is also another key element, it is essential for all types of hazards, and this is no different for physical hazards, it is key that sanitation processes are in place and that facilities are cleaned and sanitized to the highest standard to remove any potential hazards and to leave the production and other departments ready for a busy day of producing safe food.

GMP can be covered all over the facility from start to finish and this leads on to Good Distribution Practices. When the packaged good is being stored before being shipped to the consumer it is important that the storage conditions are clean, tidy, and free from any damage as if not this could affect or damage the product. Thinking of this you may think that if the product is packed there is no need to adhere to these practices just as much as in an open product area, but it is essential that these are followed right through from start to finish to avoid any complaints or serious consequences to the consumer’s health.

Overall, I think it is safe to say that physical hazards play a huge part in food recalls and can have serious consequences if they are not controlled. Due to the wide variety of physical hazards present out there in the food manufacturing environment it is necessary to really think through the product, the process and what hazards could occur and how we can prevent them. Doing this can make us one step closer to helping put the best interest of our consumers at heart.

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The High Cost of Cross-Contamination in the Food Sector

Fri, 26 May 2023 12:54:39 +0000

The High Cost of Cross-Contamination in the Food Sector

What are the Physical Hazards of Food?

Common Physical Hazards: A Closer Look

How do Physical Hazards Occur in the Food Safety Process?

Physical Hazard Prevention: A Step-by-Step Guide

What are the types of food contamination?

Food contamination, a matter of significant concern, is classified into three broad categories: biological, chemical, and physical. Notwithstanding, other categories, such as allergens and radiological contamination, also exist but do not form part of the primary triad. The key hazards in a business associated with food vary in relation to the nature of raw materials and products produced.

Let’s delve deeper into the nuances of these three categories of food contamination and familiarise ourselves with common instances of each:

Biological Contamination

Biological contamination is arguably the most prevalent, referring to harmful microorganisms like bacteria, moulds, yeasts, viruses, and parasites, collectively termed pathogens. Depending on the specific pathogenic contamination in food, consequences can range from mild ailments such as nausea to severe, life-threatening foodborne diseases.

Prominent biological contaminants in the food industry encompass Norovirus, Salmonella, Clostridium perfringens, Campylobacter, and Staphylococcus aureus. These microorganisms top the charts for causing foodborne illnesses in the US. Moreover, other pathogens such as Clostridium botulinum, E.coli, and Listeria significantly contribute to this category. Their impact leads to at least 20% of foodborne illnesses in the US annually.

In favourable conditions, biological contaminants can cause notable alterations in food items over time. They can produce acid, lower the pH, and even create an unpleasant odour or changes in food colour and texture. These indicators point towards food spoilage, rendering it unsafe for consumption.

However, the potentially severe effects of microbial contamination can be mitigated and controlled through proper food safety practices and regular monitoring. An efficient food safety management system can control and eliminate these contamination sources.

Certain biological contaminants naturally exist in fresh produce, particularly those grown in soil and exposed to environmental contaminants. Moreover, unpasteurised milk and raw meat, being highly nutritious, provide a fertile breeding ground for infectious organisms. Contaminated water also poses a significant risk as a source of biological contaminants. Therefore, appropriate preparation and cooking of food ingredients is vital to prevent pathogens from harming consumers.

Chemical Contamination

Chemical contamination relates to the unwelcome presence of chemicals in food, posing a safety risk. Common chemical contaminants include cleaning solutions, fertiliser residues, pesticides, industrial oils, additives, and by-products.

The classifications of chemical contaminants are based on their origin and can be divided into industrial, agricultural, toxic heavy metal, natural, and preservative chemicals. While chemical contaminations occur less frequently than biological contamination, their potential for harm is substantial.

Chemical contaminants like cleaning agents can lead to burning, swelling, gastric issues, and long-term effects. Misuse or improper storage can introduce these substances into food during preparation. Cleaning products, if not adequately removed, can linger on surfaces and contaminate food.

In certain instances, utensils coated with non-food grade materials have been reported to contaminate food with toxic metals, emphasising the importance of sourcing high-quality materials. Similar importance should be given to raw food materials, with agricultural products like fertiliser residues and pesticides potentially

Moreover, the cooking process can contribute to chemical contamination. Substances such as additives can become contaminants when used excessively or found in inappropriate products. For instance, acrylamide, a harmful carcinogenic chemical, can indicate temperature abuse.

Physical Contamination

Physical contamination denotes the presence of unwanted foreign materials in food, leading to injuries, bleeding, choking, and broken teeth when consumed. In severe cases, physical contaminants can obstruct airways and impede normal breathing. Physical contaminants may be natural or unnatural, depending on the nature of the contaminant. Examples of physical contamination include bone fragments, feathers or hair, fruit pits, stems and skins, glass, soil or sand, metal shards, pest droppings, and personal effects.

Natural physical contaminants are inherent in food materials, like stems in fruits, while unnatural contaminants include items like stones, glass, and metal fragments. Depending on their size, physical contaminants can be visually detected.

Undetected physical contaminants can pose significant risks, causing injuries, cuts in the mouth or throat, or even more severe consequences. Contaminants such as hair or fingernails can come from food handlers, and these contaminants can also lead to other types of contamination, such as biological. For instance, fingernails can introduce harmful organisms into food.

Similarly, physical contamination from pests can lead to the introduction of pathogens and diseases into the food. This highlights the importance of maintaining a pest-free production area.

Incidents of physical contamination can trigger widespread food recalls in food manufacturing. In 2019, , primarily composed of hard and soft plastics, metal, rubber, and glass, often originating from packaging materials and poorly maintained equipment.

While these contaminants can easily infiltrate the prepared food, they can be managed effectively with a robust food safety management system. Proper preventive and control measures can ensure that these contaminations are thoroughly monitored. Your best strategy would be to implement a digital Food Safety Management System (FSMS).��

What is Cross-Contamination in Food Enterprises?

There are at . Food businesses should pay attention and work on preventing cross-contamination at any point in the food chain.

Cross-contamination occurs when any such material is transferred from one surface or food item to another, including all contaminants.

Why Cross-Contamination Matters to Food Enterprises?

Public Health: Cross-contamination may facilitate the spread of harmful bacteria, viruses, and parasites, potentially leading to foodborne illnesses. Ensuring food safety is crucial for safeguarding consumers’ health and preventing disease outbreaks, such as salmonella, E. coli, and listeria.

Financial Impact: Foodborne illnesses can result in expensive recalls, product disposal, legal fees, and settlements. Additionally, they can harm a food business’s reputation, leading to lost customers and reduced sales. In extreme cases, businesses may face closure due to non-compliance with food safety regulations.

Legal Compliance: Food enterprises must comply with stringent food safety regulations established by local, national, and international authorities. Cross-contamination can lead to non-compliance, resulting in fines, penalties, and the suspension or revocation of operating licenses.

Consumer Trust: Maintaining consumer trust is vital for any food business’s success. Incidents of cross-contamination can erode this trust, causing customers to question a company’s commitment to food safety and quality.

Allergen Management: Cross-contamination can endanger customers with food allergies, as allergens from one food product may inadvertently end up in another. Properly managing allergen risks is essential to prevent severe allergic reactions and protect customers with food allergies.

If you want to monitor what food is being recalled by the government, you can follow our monthly Risk assessment report to follow the latest food recall notifications.

How to Prevent Cross-Contamination and Reducing the Risk of Costly Incidents in Food Businesses?

in food businesses begins with recognising the risks and implementing effective management measures. This process emphasises the importance of conducting a comprehensive risk assessment, such as a HACCP assessment or a legally compliant food safety plan. These assessments should identify all hazards associated with raw materials, products, and the manufacturing environment, determine which ones require management, and establish the necessary controls or procedures to ensure consistent, comprehensive management.

Essential elements of cross-contamination control include designing equipment to facilitate easy cleaning and confirming that food contact surfaces are made of appropriate materials. Rigorous cleaning and sanitising procedures are crucial to maintaining a hygienic environment and minimising the risk of contamination. When feasible, it is vital to eliminate potential sources of hazards if they are not an integral part of the production process.

Another critical aspect of cross-contamination prevention is implementing thorough segregation measures, particularly for materials containing different allergens. This practice ensures that contaminants do not spread from one product to another during the production process. Employee training is essential in upholding proper hygiene and safety practices. Regular training sessions and refreshers help guarantee that staff members understand the importance of preventing cross-contamination and are familiar with the required procedures.

Monitoring for potential hazards and evaluating the effectiveness of control procedures is an ongoing process. It involves measures such as approving cleaning activities before starting production lines, which helps ensure the environment is safe and prepared for food processing. By implementing these strategies, food businesses can effectively manage the risks associated with cross-contamination and maintain the highest standards of food safety and quality.

Establishing your food supply chain utilising top-notch food safety management software is crucial to the success of your food businesses. If you’re pondering over enhancing your existing food supply chain, feel free to request a demo and engage in discussion with us.

Ensuring Employee Training and Knowledge in Preventing Cross-Contamination in Food Businesses

Training is a crucial component of all food business operations, particularly in preventing cross-contamination. Initial training should encompass an understanding of cross-contamination hazards and the site procedures to manage them. Regular updates and monitoring of the hazard should follow this.

Company culture can also play a significant role in managing cross-contamination. Encouraging staff to report anything that appears wrong and ensuring they know who to report concerns to enables unexpected occurrences to be investigated and, if necessary, additional action to be taken to protect consumers by preventing contamination or correctly managing any contaminated product.

What are the five useful steps for preventing cross-contamination?

Implementing effective measures to prevent cross-contamination is crucial in maintaining food safety standards. Here are five vital steps that serve as a guide to curbing cross-contamination in your food processing environment:

Identify Hazards: The first crucial step in preventing cross-contamination is to recognise potential hazards. These could range from biological contaminants like bacteria, viruses, and parasites to physical or chemical hazards. A keen understanding of these threats is fundamental to devising effective strategies for their control.

Locate Where They Can Occur: The next step involves mapping out where these identified hazards can occur within your food processing or preparation areas. This could be at any stage, from sourcing raw materials to serving or selling the food. Locating these potential contamination points allows for targeted action to prevent the occurrence of cross-contamination.

Introduce Mitigation Measures: Once you’ve identified the hazards and located where they can occur, the next step is to implement preventive measures. This could include practices like proper cleaning and sanitising of surfaces, effective waste management, regular pest control, or appropriate protective clothing for food handlers.

Train Employees: Employee training is a critical component of preventing cross-contamination. A well-trained team is equipped with the knowledge of hygiene standards, safe food handling practices, and appropriate actions to take when potential hazards are identified. Regular training sessions can ensure that these standards are maintained consistently.

Validate, Verify, and Monitor: Lastly, it’s essential to validate and verify that your cross-contamination prevention strategies are effective. This can be done through routine checks, inspections, and testing. Continuous monitoring allows for immediate action to be taken when standards are not met, ensuring that food safety is always prioritised.

By following these steps, you can ensure a safer food environment, reducing the risk of foodborne illnesses and safeguarding your customers’ health. Integrating these practices into your food safety management plan can significantly improve your business’s overall food hygiene ratings and reputation.

Conclusion

Cross-contamination in the food industry poses significant risks to public health, financial stability, and consumer trust. Food businesses must understand the hazards, implement effective management measures, and ensure employees are well-trained and knowledgeable in preventing cross-contamination. By following the outlined steps and best practices, food businesses can maintain the highest standards of food safety and quality, safeguarding the health of customers and employees alike.

If you want to elevate your food safety standards and mitigate cross-contamination risks, X��° offers a comprehensive solution. Our platform is designed to help you streamline your food safety processes, optimise allergen management, and improve overall operational efficiency. Don’t hesitate to submit a demo request today and experience the benefits of X��° firsthand.

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Novel Food Regulation: EFSA versus FDA

Tue, 07 Feb 2023 20:34:31 +0000

Novel Food Regulation:
EFSA vs. FDA

Catalogue:

What defines Novel Food?

How does the European Food Safety Authority classify Novel Foods?

Placing Novel Foods on The Union List

How are Novel Foods defined by the Food and Drug Administration?

How does the FDA qualify a GRAS substance?

What defines Novel Food?

On February 10th, 2022, the authorized the placing on the market of a . The term ‘house cricket’ refers to the adult of Acheta domesticus, an insect species that belongs to the Gryllidae family.

This authorization of the house cricket by the EFSA will allow the applicant to place this insect species on the EU market under certain conditions of use. This new Novel Food will consist of the frozen, dried, and powder forms of house cricket. It is intended to be marketed as a snack or as a food ingredient, in several food products.

To explain it let’s start with the word Novel.

The word Novel means something new, unusual, or innovative. The term “. Under . The category covers new foods, food from new sources, new substances used in food as well as new ways and technologies for producing food. Examples include oil rich in omega-3 fatty acids from krill as a new source of food, edible insects, or plant sterols as a new substance, or nanotechnology as a new way of producing food.

Traditional food is a subset of Novel Food and refers to food that is traditionally consumed anywhere outside Europe. Before we can consume any Novel Food, it is critical to understand if it is safe. All Novel Food needs to undergo a food safety assessment. Even traditional foods need to be assessed for safety before it can be traded in the EU – being proven to be consumed safely for at least 25 years.

How does the European Food Safety Authority classify Novel Foods?

Since January 1st, 2018, the European Commission has been responsible for authorizing Novel Foods and, as part of the procedure, can ask the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) to conduct a scientific risk assessment to establish their safety .

Pre-market authorization of Novel Foods based on an evaluation in line with the above principles is necessary.

In January 2021, the EFSA published its��. The EFSA safety evaluations are a necessary step in the regulation of novel food, as their scientific advice supports EU and national decision-makers who authorize these products for the European market.

Below is a capture of the milestone since the first published scientific opinion by the EFSA on Novel Food application.

Placing Novel Foods on The Union List

Novel Foods should not be placed on the market or used in food for human consumption unless they are included in a authorized to be placed on the market within the Union (‘’).

According to the , criteria for the assessment of the safety risks arising from Novel Foods should be clearly defined and laid down. Under the procedure for authorizing a Novel Food and updating The Union List, the Authority should be requested to give its opinion if the update is liable to human health. The assessment includes also consideration of possible effects on vulnerable groups of the population. When a Novel Food is authorized and included in the Union List, the Commission should have the power to introduce post-market monitoring requirements to monitor the use of the authorized Novel Food to ensure that the use is within safe limits as established in the risk assessment by the Authority.

Article 4 of the above-mentioned regulation, set the procedure for the determination of the novel food status. The food business should:

Verify whether the food which they intend to place on the market within the Union falls within the scope of this Regulation
Where they are unsure whether a food that they intend to place on the market within the Union falls within the scope of this Regulation, food business operators shall consult the Member State where they first intend to place the novel food. Food business operators shall provide the necessary information to the Member State to enable it to determine whether food falls within the scope of this Regulation

An applicant who intends to place a novel food on the EU market should apply to the . After having verified its validity, the European Commission makes it available to the Member States and mandates the EFSA for a scientific assessment. The EFSA will issue an opinion within six months of a valid application receipt.

Below is a flow chart that represents the steps for the authorization of the novel food.

How are Novel Foods defined by the Food and Drug Administration?

The United States of America (USA) has different regulatory classification systems and pre-market approval processes. In the United States, no regulation defines “Novel Foods”; however, any new food ingredient is considered either as a food additive or Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS).

A food additive is any substance that is reasonably expected to become a component of food either directly or indirectly; these require pre-market approval. ��In this case, the applicant needs to submit a Food Additive Petition (FAP) to the USA Food and Drug Administration (FDA). A food additive is any substance that is reasonably expected to become a component of food either directly or indirectly; these require pre-market approval. ��In this case, the applicant needs to submit a Food Additive Petition (FAP) to the US FDA.

GRAS substances, on the other hand, are exempted from the definition of “food additive” and instead are defined as “substances that are generally recognized, among experts qualified by scientific training and experience to evaluate their safety as having been adequately shown through scientific procedures to be safe under the conditions of their intended use.”

How does the FDA qualify a GRAS substance?

The states that any person may notify the FDA of a conclusion that a substance is GRAS under the conditions of its intended use.

A GRAS conclusion is based upon scientific procedures and requires the same quantity and quality of scientific evidence as is required to obtain approval for a food additive and direct the applicant to a series of guidance documents that address scientific issues associated with demonstrating the safety of a food substance. A GRAS conclusion based on .

Furthermore, all GRAS conclusions must be considered in context based on the knowledge and information available at a point in time, because scientific knowledge and information about a particular substance can evolve and sometimes change over time. A food additive petition relies on privately generated data and information that are submitted to the FDA for review and determination of safety. The GRAS notification relies on broadly available, published information and data on the substance that can serve as the basis of the safety determination made by experts outside the FDA.

The notifier must address the safety of the notified substance, considering all animal food (including drinking water) as part of the animal’s total diet, considering any chemically or pharmacologically related substances in such a diet. In the explanation, the applicant must also address the safety of the notified substance regarding human exposure, considering all dietary sources and considering any chemically or pharmacologically related substances.

Furthermore, he must explain how the generally available data and information that he relies on to establish safety, provide a basis for the conclusion that the notified substance is generally recognized, among qualified experts, to be safe under the conditions of its intended use for both the target animal and for humans consuming human food derived from food-producing animals.

Some of the FDA scientific guidance documents are expressly directed to the evaluation of the safety of food additives. However, many of the recommendations in these guidelines could be useful to any person who evaluates whether a substance is GRAS under the conditions of its intended use. The FDA intends to re-visit these scientific guidance documents to determine whether and how to modify them to clarify that their guidance on evaluating the safety of a food substance applies regardless of whether the substance would be used in food as a food additive or as a GRAS substance.

The FDA’s response to a GRAS Notice has been in one of three categories:

The agency does not question the basis for the notifier’s GRAS conclusion.
The agency concludes that the notice does not provide a sufficient basis for a GRAS conclusion (e.g., because the notice does not include appropriate data and information or because the available data and information raise questions about the safety of the notified substance); or
The response letter states that the agency has ceased to evaluate the GRAS notice at the notifier’s request.

In the GRAS’ final ruling, FDA noted the intention to maintain an Inventory of GRAS notices and the agency’s response to those notices, which continues the practice that began under a proposed rule published in 1997 . The��page is the entry point to this information.

This inventory includes all filed GRAS notices since 1998, regardless of whether the notice is pending at FDA or has come to closure, and regardless of the nature of the FDA’s response. While the Regulatory framework is established for Novel Food and the evolution of food habits can offer new marketing frontiers for food business operators interested in novel food, the adaptation and therefore the consumption of Novel Food in the EU will probably occur more gradually. Certainly, later than in other member countries that do not have their own typical cuisine and are more open to innovation and experimentation in the food sector.

Food manufacturers need to be aware of food safety hazards in order to produce safe and high-quality food products. By downloading datasheets about food safety hazards, manufacturers can stay up-to-date on the latest information and make informed decisions about the food they produce. This helps to ensure the safety of their products and gives consumers peace of mind when purchasing and consuming food products.

X��° is an innovative software designed by food safety experts, and we are dedicated to providing solutions for a safer world for food manufacturers. for the latest food safety news. If you would like more details about how to ensure the food safety of your company, submit a demo request here.

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Complete Guide to Food Cooking Temperature Control

Thu, 15 Dec 2022 17:59:31 +0000

Dodging the Danger Zone:
A Complete Guide to Food Cooking Temperature Control

Your guide to the importance of temperature control and different techniques to ensure food stays out of the ‘Danger Zone’ – remaining safe to consume.

Catalogue:

What is temperature control, and why is it so important to food safety?

How do I verify that cooked food is at the correct temperature?

A precise guide to temperature control food safety

What is the difference between verifying internal and external food temperatures?

What are the requirements for food receiving temperature?

What is temperature control, and why is it so important to food safety?

Temperature control is an essential measure in maintaining the quality, consistency, and safety of food. There are several reasons for this.

During the production and preparation of food, it is always the responsibility of the business to follow food safety guidelines regarding temperature control closely.

By controlling the temperature, it is possible to control the levels of bacteria which spoil foods and cause illness. Heat kills bacteria, while sufficiently cold temperatures slow down the growth of bacteria to prevent it from reaching harmful levels.

The so-called��– explained in more detail below – is a temperature range where bacteria grow and multiply the fastest. While bacteria can grow and survive between 5-65°C (41-149°F),��the ‘Danger Zone’ for foodborne bacteria multiplication ranges from 20-45°C��(68-113°��).

Those involved in food production or storage must avoid the ‘Danger Zone’ by using approved methods to chill, heat, and store foodstuffs.

Having outlined the crucial importance of temperature control, this article analyses various techniques to ensure that food stays out of danger and is safe to consume. Drawing on��’s two decades of experience providing the food industry with compliant solutions, it addresses common questions surrounding temperature control.

How do I verify that cooked food is at the correct temperature?��

Whether you’re checking frozen, refrigerated, or hot food, temperature control is divided into two main parts. Firstly, there are��logging options.
These include:

1. In-Process/Continuous

With in-process loggers, the temperature-checking device runs in the same process space as the one using it. In- are ideal for production lines that pass through the cooking unit, as illustrated below.

The entire (heatproof) unit passes inside the cooking unit, from ovens to fryers, typically on the same conveyor belt that carries the food items.

2. Out of Process

An out-of-process logger essentially means that the component runs in a different process space than the one using it. These types of loggers are not heat-resistant, so you have to place the component outside the cooking unit with the probes extended inwards.

If set up correctly, out-of-process loggers usually provide sufficient temperature logging data but need more completeness and convenience of the in-process loggers.

3. Spot Check

Spot check thermometers are handheld, accurate devices used to verify the temperature of cooked food along the production line. Most food manufacturers carry out these checks regularly, assigning an employee (often one of the Quality Assurance team) to conduct probe checks on production lines at a set interval, such as every 15 or 30 minutes.

4. Finished Product Checks

Finished product checks are carried out after the food item is packaged and ready for dispatch. Usually, these are ‘destructive’ tests, whereby the tester uses the probe to pierce the item’s packaging and verify its temperature. The food is then discarded. The recent��outlines this in more detail (see Clause 6.1.5).

Infrared thermometers are a sufficiently accurate (and sometimes speedier) method for finished product checks, returning quick results which can be further verified with a core temperature check using a probe if required.

5. Storage Checks

These are somewhat self-explanatory – verifying the temperature of items kept in storage. One of the most accurate, time-efficient ways to observe this is with a wireless monitoring system.��offer real-time temperature monitoring, automated reporting for easy analysis, and instant alarm notification to circumvent stock wastage.

Having evaluated the role of loggers, it is next relevant to examine the second, often overlooked part of temperature control:��equipment calibration.

Take fridge temperature monitoring as an example. Given that most fridges and chillers have a temperature display, it’s fair to question why a secondary temperature check is necessary.

The answer is that temperature displays typically show the temperature a fridge is set to rather than the temperature it is reading – hence the near-impossibility of verifying its true accuracy. Malfunctions or breakdowns are common issues with any refrigeration or cooling unit. Therefore, it is important to regularly carry out independent temperature checks to ensure that the fridge temperature is safe – especially if the products are high-risk and/or perishable.

The BRCGS’ Global Standard for Food Safety is reinforced by the��, which states:

“Using a thermometer, you need to check that your fridge is cold enough. This is because the dials on fridges sometimes show you the wrong temperature, and your fridge should be 5°C or below.”

In addition to food safety and quality, fridge monitoring systems with alarms offer excellent risk management and cost-savings – particularly for larger chillers which may contain hundreds or thousands of pounds’ worth in storage. Non-compliances that result in loss or wastage can be identified and prevented before the stock has to be unnecessarily discarded.

A precise guide to temperature control food safety

Have you ever heard of FU and PU values?

These are two crucially important principles for determining the point at which food becomes ‘cooked’ and safe to eat. When utilised correctly, FU and PU values establish the lethality of a thermal process.

More information on how to calculate the values can be found��. Correct calculations will allow you to find the sweet spot between time and temperature – although some stellar systems include software that automatically calculates these values.

In technical circles, cooking is typically defined as a thermal process designed to reduce��Listeria monocytogenes��at the equivalent of 70°C for two minutes.

Taken from��(pp. 146–147), the below table demonstrates the equivalent cooking processes designed to achieve 70°C, calculated using a��z��value of 7.5°C. For example, if the food is heated at 68°C, the table indicates that one minute of cooking is the equivalent of 0.541 minutes at 70°C. Therefore, to achieve the equivalent of two minutes at 70°C, it would be necessary to heat the food at 68°C for 3.70 minutes (2 ÷ 0.541 = 3.70).

The temperature at the slowest heating point	Lethal rate (equivalent to 1 minute at 70°C)	Time required at the referenced temperature to achieve an equivalent process (min)
60	0.046	43.48
61	0.063	31.74
62	0.086	23.26
63	0.116	17.24
64	0.158	12.66
65	0.215	9.30
66	0.293	6.83
67	0.398	5.02
68	0.541	3.70
69	0.735	2.72
70	1.00	2.00
71	1.36	1.47
72	1.85	1.08
73	2.51	0.80 (48s)
74	3.41	0.60 (36s)
75	4.64	0.43 (26s)
76	6.31	0.32 (19s)
77	8.58	0.23 (14s)
78	11.66	0.17(10s)
79	15.85	0.13(8s)
80	21.54	0.09 (5s)

Essential to lethality is the aforementioned ‘Danger Zone’, the specifications of which are illustrated in the below table. Refer to this for a breakdown of the specific temperature control ranges.

Food Zone	Temperature Range	Description
Hot Food Zone	60°C+ (140°F)	Food must not drop 60°C below when being displayed or served (we recommend cooking it to 74°C+)
Danger Zone	4°C to 60°C (40°F to 140°F)	Bacteria grow most rapidly, doubling in number in as little as 20 minutes. After spending two hours in the Danger Zone, high-risk food must be thrown away.
Cold Food Zone	0°C to 4°C (32°F to 40°F)	This is the normal temperature range for most refrigerators.
Frozen Food Zone	-18°C or lower (0°F)	Most freezers are set to -18°C or below

What is the difference between verifying internal and external food temperatures?

An��infrared thermometer��takes the temperature of the outside surface of the food. It does not display the internal temperature of the item and, consequently is better suited for checking the temperature of cold foods where only the surface temperature is required.

A probe thermometer is usually the preferred method to check the temperature of cooked food. Some teams may decide that an infrared thermometer is sufficient, although due to the much wider accuracy range of an infrared thermometer (e.g. +/- 2.5°C as opposed to +/- 0.5°C on a probe thermometer), they would have to be aiming for a higher temperature reading in order to ensure compliance and food safety.

When cooking, the outside of the food is always much hotter than the core. To ensure the food is cooked through, it is vital to check the��with a temperature probe.

for a useful chart outlining the safe minimum internal temperature for cooking various food items, taken from Food Safety Gov UK.

What are the requirements for food receiving temperature?��

If you’re a food business, it’s important to only accept delivery of food you are sure is safe and suitable. Generally, this means the food is delivered from a known supplier, protected from contamination, and handed over at a safe temperature.

It is also worth formally agreeing with your delivery business at what temperature the food will be delivered at or a safe time period. Once you’ve received your food and everything is acceptable, it is crucial that you keep food under temperature control.

Ways of reducing the risk of receiving non-compliant food include:

ensure you can identify all delivered food and you know the supplier’s name and address
ask your supplier to protect food from contamination (e.g. in food-safe packaging)
ensure someone is on-site to inspect food as it is delivered
check delivered food is properly covered or packaged
check that there are no mold, insects, droppings, or foreign objects (like glass or metal) in the food
check that the use-by date of items has not been passed
if the food is potentially hazardous, check that it is delivered at the correct temperature
check that frozen food is delivered frozen hard
check that chilled food is delivered at 5°C or colder
check that hot food is delivered at 60°C or hotter
if you have agreed to accept food between 5°C and 60°C, check that the delivery has not taken longer than the agreed time (check departure and arrival times)

This article has focused on temperature control within the cooking process. Controlling the temperature of production areas, ingredients, and products during storage and transport (both before and after manufacturing and cooking) is also vital to ensure audit compliance and food safety. Alternatively, if you want to learn more about food temperature, .

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7 Ways Compliance Management Platforms Improve Operational Efficiency of Food Manufacturers

Mon, 21 Nov 2022 21:57:20 +0000

Seven Ways Compliance Management Platforms Improve Operational Efficiency of Food Manufacturers

Food is life, and food manufacturers are the ones that provide people with these life-nourishing substances to support life. However, food manufacturers have many challenges to contend with. From meeting consumer expectations for food safety, traceability, and quality control, food companies have their hands full while ensuring people have sufficient food delivered to their dining tables.

While there are many solutions to help solve these challenges, the most effective solutions come from implementing a compliance management system. Compliance management is about keeping track of a company’s legal, regulatory, and quality requirements. However, despite these tools, many food companies still need help with compliance management.

If you want to get ahead of the food manufacturing compliance management game, you’ve come to the right place. We’ve identified seven ways food manufacturers can improve operational efficiency by implementing compliance management platforms.

Promote global standards

In today’s food manufacturing world, promoting global standards is more important than ever. After all, the industry is constantly evolving in response to new regulations and market demands. For example, there are now stricter guidelines for food safety quality management systems.

In addition, many countries have started implementing their unique regulations regarding labelling ingredients sourced from genetically modified crops. Compliance management platforms are designed to help companies manage their compliance information.

Managing compliance can be challenging when you’re a global company with operations in multiple locations. You must ensure that your procedures and standards are consistent across all locations. This is where a food safety management system can come in handy. One of the best ways for food manufacturers to promote global standards is by implementing a compliance management system that isle from anywhere at any time.

Improve traceability

Food manufacturers are under increasing pressure to prove their products are safe and high-quality. This means they need to be able to trace the ingredients and components of their products back to the source—the ability to track products from their source, although the supply chain, is essential for food manufacturers.

With a compliance management tool in place, companies can be sure that every step of production is documented and accounted for. An efficient food safety document management system allows them to maintain high-quality control standards and food safety at every production level.

Food manufacturers must also ensure that if there is a problem with the quality or safety of their products, they can trace those issues anywhere in the production cycle. By using a system for food traceability, companies can record where ingredients come from and how they were manufactured. With these tools, companies can easily verify the origin of ingredients, track what happened during processing, and keep track of product specifications over time.

Ensure regulatory compliance

Food safety and quality regulations are complex and constantly changing. In some cases, the rules are established at the state or federal level; in others, they may be enacted by local governments or industry trade groups. Food manufacturers must stay on top of these regulations to ensure compliance and avoid costly fines or penalties.

With the help of a quality management system, manufacturers can ensure that they meet all relevant standards and comply with government regulations. A compliance management platform also helps companies maintain complete records of their processes so they can demonstrate compliance if an inspection takes place—which can help avoid costly fines or penalties.

A traceability system can help companies meet regulatory requirements by tracking ingredients from source through processing and distribution until they reach their destination. A traceability system is important for assisting food companies in ensuring regulatory compliance.

Streamline food safety audits

Every year, companies spend millions of dollars on food safety audits. A compliance management platform allows companies to streamline food safety audits to save costs. This can help companies reduce the time spent on audits and ensure that products are safe to eat. These technology tools can automatically generate information on how products were processed and where they came from.

For instance, a food manufacturer discovers it uses ingredients from a supplier that is not following proper procedures in their production facility. It was through a safety audit that the company found this out and acted before any products were shipped out.

Integrating traceability systems with enterprise technology like an ERP platform is an excellent practice to streamline food safety audits better. Because companies must comply with government regulations, an ERP tool provides vital traceability data for managing food safety and quality control and safety. However, there are a lot of different systems with different workflows in Safety audits. To understand the best practice of your food safety plan, you’ll need to consult with our technical experts to enhance your current system. You can also check out on the market today to help you leverage this technology.

Bring the supply chain closer to home and consumer

The food supply chain is becoming increasingly globalised as companies increase their presence in foreign markets. One of the reasons for this trend is that consumers expect products to be available at any time, which means that there are more opportunities for contamination.

Traceability can also help companies bring the supply chain closer to consumers. This is important for companies who want transparency about where their products come from. Companies can also benefit from a closer relationship with their suppliers. By directly interacting with the supplier, companies will be able to understand their processes better and ensure they are in line with the company’s standards.

Due to , more than 800 million people live in hunger and are undernourished worldwide. An integrated compliance and supply chain management system can help companies bring their supply chains closer to home. Aside from minimising food wastage, this approach allows them to reduce costs and the amount of time it takes for products to reach their destination.

Reduce food waste and recall risk

One of the biggest challenges the food industry faces is addressing food safety hazards to reduce food waste. As a result of the global food system, there is often more food than people want to buy.

Year after year, the world wastes a third of all food produced, amounting to around $940 billion annually in . Likewise, the worldwide food supply chain is characterised by complexity and uncertainty, often with many intermediaries between the supplier and retailer. This makes it difficult to trace a product back to its source if there are problems or recalls.

One way to reduce food waste is through better forecasting and ordering so that companies don’t end up with too many products. This is why companies use technology like CRM tools to help zero in on their pipelines and prevent the over-allocation of food products. If you are still using paper-based system to manage your food safety plan and suppliers, you can use our ROI tool to evaluate the return of your business if adopted X��°.

CRM also helps achieve quality client communication to ensure correct orders are delivered promptly. This means that companies won’t be forced to throw away products that have gone unsold or expired. You can search reputable online software marketplaces to find the right CRM tool. But be sure to read expert, unbiased software product analyses such as , HubSpot, or .

Enhancing productivity and profitability

Productivity measures how much value a company generates per unit of input. This can include labour, capital, land, and other information. Food companies need to be highly productive to make money.

However, this doesn’t mean that food manufacturers should be more profitable by cutting back on employees or reducing wages for those employed at the firm. Instead, productivity increases can come from providing better tools and equipment for workers. This way, they can perform their jobs more efficiently without sacrificing output quality.

By reducing food waste, companies can save money and reduce the amount of land used for agriculture. This helps them enhance productivity and profitability.

Remain compliant with compliance management tools

We’ve presented how compliance management platforms for food manufacturers can help improve their operational efficiency. These software systems can manage all the processes of a food manufacturing business and help individuals work together by connecting them electronically.

Compliance management platforms improve operational efficiency in food manufacturing by combining their core functionality with additional tools to help you manage food safety, maintain traceability, improve quality and compliance, and automate specific processes.

Evidence suggests these robust tools have helped food manufacturers become more efficient and improve their quality control systems. So, it’s high time these reliable technology tools help elevate your food business to another level of compliance, food safety, and sustainable profitability.

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6 Ways to Implement Preventive Measures and Controls For Your Food Safety

Wed, 02 Nov 2022 17:37:29 +0000

Preventive Measures And Controls For Food Safety

Food Safety is one of the most critical problems for the food industry, and prevention is the key. Unfortunately, there’s no such thing as a 100% fool-proof way to prevent foodborne illnesses. But there are ways to reduce the risk and avoid common mistakes that can lead to food contamination. Food businesses can take several simple steps to help prevent foodborne illnesses. According to WHO’s estimation,

As a food business owner, preventive measures and controls are a better way to reduce the risk and harm to your business. Improving food safety benefits customers and protects anyone downstream of the manufacturing process which handles food. It can also protect people and animals exposed to microbes that may have been inadvertently introduced into the food. Follow these six steps to produce safe foods and help keep your products clean. For an in-depth understanding of Critical Control Points (CCPs), consider reading our comprehensive article: [/blog/understanding-the-difference-between-prp-oprp-ccp-an-introduction/]

Catalogue:

What are preventive measures and controls for food safety?

How can we prevent foodborne illness effectively?

6 Ways to reduce food safety risk

What are preventive measures and controls for food safety?

From Codex’s definition, means “any action and activity that can be used to prevent or elminate a food safety hazard or reduce it to an acceptable level.”

Control measures are under three categories: prerequisite programmes (PRP), operational prerequisite programmes (OPRP) and critical control points (CCP)(extended reading: understanding the difference between PRP, OPRP and CCP). To review the control measures and keep everything documented, food safety management software can help you construct your HACCP plans and control the risk effectively.

How can we prevent foodborne illness effectively?

While individuals can proceed with , businesses face more significant challenges. Some companies may lack the necessary resources or knowledge to implement comprehensive scientific methods and practices for prevention. Still, it is incumbent on all of us involved in food manufacturing to create a safe environment for the handling, preparation, and storage of food in a manner to prevent foodborne illnesses. Reading through the , you will undoubtedly find an incredible amount of sleep-inducing reading. However, you will also find several keys to manufacture, pack, hold and ship food for human consumption. You can also look at different food safety systems like HACCP, FSMA, and GFSI, each of which will dive deeper into the specific elements required to ensure food safety. An argument can be made regarding which methods/elements are the best, but we will focus on a few synonymous foundational pillars.

1. Use Good Agricultural Practices

- Use approved pesticides and herbicides
- Practice proper irrigation and crop management
- Maintain clean and sanitary facilities

2. Develop and Implement Food Safety Plans

- Identify risks/hazards
- Set up a defence against bacteria before anything occurs

3. Maintain Good Hygiene Practices, Including Plant Sanitation

- According to HACCP principles, Sanitation is the fifth most important factor in ensuring food safety
- Establish and follow strict cleaning procedures
- Maintain cleanliness in all areas of the food establishment
- Properly sanitise all utensils, equipment, and food contact surfaces

4. Follow Proper Cooking Methods

- Cook food correctly
- Know how to cook different food types
- Use appropriately calibrated thermometers to ensure food has reached the correct temperature

Improving food safety benefits customers and protects anyone downstream of the manufacturing process which handles food. It can also protect people and animals exposed to foodborne illnesses that may have been inadvertently introduced into the food. A food manager must ensure written instructions are available for which of the following steps to produce safe foods and help keep your products clean:

6 Ways to reduce food safety risk

1. Execute management commitment��

People may think this is not a preventative measure. However, if management is not committed to food safety, it can completely derail your food safety program. The food industry has experienced its fair share of examples when control intentionally overrides food safety policies and procedures. It doesn’t have to be a systemic issue that has repeated itself over a substantial period – for a food safety issue with deadly results, there only needs to be a single occasion where food safety practices were ignored. Food safety practices are a top-down process.

2. Construct your food safety plan

Creating a robust food safety plan is an integral preventative measure for food safety. All food businesses should have a written food safety plan that outlines the specific procedures and practices that will be followed to ensure safe food handling. Your legislative authority typically requires an adequate food safety plan (download our “Developing a Food Safety Plan Under FSMA” or read an in-depth analysis of the difference between HACCP and HARPC for a detailed in-depth analysis of the difference between HACCP and HARPC��for detail guide).

Regardless of the “brand” of food safety plan you choose, here is the checklist of writing a food safety plan:

Identify and describe the product/process
Outline the process and construct a flow diagram
Analyze the potential hazards/risk at each step in the process
Determine science-based critical limits and monitor the process
Determine corrective actions and apply them
Validate your decisions

3. Educate your employee with the best practice of food safety knowledge

Employee knowledge is critical for preventing food safety issues. Food safety training should cover basic hygiene, food handling procedures, and proper cooking/processing techniques. Employees should also be aware of the potential hazards associated with various food items.

In addition to formal training, employees should also be encouraged to ask questions and seek clarification when unsure. An open communication culture will help ensure that potential problems are quickly identified and addressed.

4. Sanitise equipment and procedures

Preventing foodborne illness starts with cleanliness. Washing hands thoroughly, keeping food preparation areas clean, and cooking food to the proper temperature are all essential steps in preventing foodborne illness.

Cleaning and sanitising are critical preventative measures for food safety. All surfaces that come into contact with food must be cleaned and sanitised regularly. This includes utensils, conveyor belts, holding hoppers, can tracks, filling machinery, packaging machinery, and other equipment or surfaces that come into contact with food.

Cleaning is the first step in the process and involves removing all dirt, debris, and contaminants from the surface. This is typically done in a conventional food system with hot water and a commercial cleaning solution applied at a prescribed dose. Once the surface is clean, it must be sanitised to kill any remaining bacteria or viruses. (it should go without saying that when mixing any solutions, it is essential to follow the manufacturer’s instructions!)

The typical sanitation process would be to mix (if necessary) the proper solutions. Once applied, they need to sit on the surface to achieve the recommended contact/dwell time. Surfaces then can be rinsed with a deluge of water before coming in contact with food. A sanitation activity can be verified through a visual inspection. However, a more effective means of verification, like a chemical concentration or ATP test, might be required.��

Cleaning and sanitising are critical preventative measures for food safety. All food contact surfaces must be cleaned and sanitised before each use to prevent the spread of foodborne illness.

5. Pest Control

Analysis of�� found that clause 11.2.12.2, pest prevention (identified as pest activity), was in the top 10.

Proper pest management is required in manufacturing/storage facilities to ensure no pests enter the product, however, it is important to clarify that the term ‘pests’ is not exclusively applied to organisms in proximity of a factory, but also includes insects and other lifeforms that can enter a food processing facility through the supply chain.

Once entered, the buildings often provide shelter, warmth, food, water, and safety from predators, all of which can serve as ideal conditions for proliferation, so it is necessary to remain vigilant.

All potential sources of contamination, including pests, must be controlled to help prevent the spread of disease-causing bacteria or other contaminants. X��° has Pest Control Module to help food safety managers to execute HACCP effortlessly.

6. Proper Cooking and Holding Temperatures

Cooking food to the proper temperature and then holding it at that temperate is one of the most important preventative measures to ensure food safety. Undercooked food can harbour harmful bacteria that can cause severe illness and even death. Food that is properly cooked but not held at the proper temperature after cooking can become dangerous.

Pasteurization and sterilization are two of the main processes for thermal processing. Previously, we’ve covered several different processing techniques, such as the thermal processing guide��and webinar about thermal processing in food industry.

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Hazards 101: An Introductory Guide

Wed, 28 Sep 2022 13:15:58 +0000

What are Food Safety Hazards?

Important to development of any HACCP or Food Safety Management plan are understanding the different Hazard types, how they can affect your food business and what needs to be put in place to avoid risks or contamination. Hazards can be categorized into biological, chemical or physical with multiple subsets for each category. Major associations clearly define hazards (below), but how do they incorporate into your FSMS?

Hazards Defined by Association
How is each Hazard category defined?
What does this mean for your Food Safety Management Plan?
How do we incorporate Hazards in our Food Safety Plan?
Examples of Hazards by category

Hazards Defined by Association

ISO – Biological, chemical or physical agent in food with the potential to cause an adverse health effect.

FDA – Hazard means any biological, chemical (including radiological), or physical agent that has the potential to cause illness or injury.

CODEX – A biological, chemical or physical agent in, or condition of, food with the potential to cause an adverse health effect.

How is each Hazard category defined?

Biological Hazards:

Biological Hazards are commonly known to be the type of hazard that poses the most immediate risk to the consumer. These can include various categories such as bacteria, viruses, parasites, and prions. There are very few food products that would not be susceptible to biological hazards at some point throughout the food chain. These types of hazards can cause large outbreaks of food poisoning which can affect a large number in the population. These microorganisms can cause different effects on consumers so it is important that manufacturers know their product well and what biological hazards they could be vulnerable to.

Biological Hazard	Hazard category	Commonly found in
Salmonella	Bacteria	Poultry, eggs, beef, pork, milk, cheese, fruit, vegetables
Enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli (E.Coli)	Bacteria	Raw meat, raw milk cheeses, Intestines of animals, raw fruits and vegetables, untreated water
Norovirus	Bacteria	Shellfish, vegetables
Campylobacter	Bacteria	Raw and undercooked poultry, untreated water
Listeria	Bacteria	raw, unpasteeurised milks and cheeses, ice cream, raw or processed vegetables, undercooked meat
Clostridium perfringens	Bacteria	meat, poultry, gravies, and other foods cooked in large batches and held at an unsafe temperature
Bacillus cereus	Bacteria	rice, potatoes, peas, beans and spices

Chemical Hazards (Including Allergens and Radiological):

Chemical hazards can potentially enter the food chain in many ways right from harvesting to packing the finished product. The use of agricultural chemicals such as pesticides used on crops and fresh produce, chemicals used in the factory such as oils, lubricants, and cleaning chemicals. It is also possible that there could the migration of chemicals from packaging material. Allergens also need to be considered and risk assessment should be conducted on the potential danger of allergens in their product. Radiological hazards are also important, and manufacturers should be aware if there is a threat to their product from radionuclides from soil or water. Manufacturers should also be aware of the origin of their materials and if there has been treatment used such as irradiation.

Chemical Hazard	Hazard category	Commonly found in
Mycotoxins	Naturally occurring element	Cereals, Nuts, Apples and other feed crops
Acrylamide	Food processing by-product	Fried chips, breakfast cereals, bread, biscuits and pastries, roasted and ground coffee.
Allergens	Natural substance	Gluten, crustaceans, eggs, fish, peanuts, nuts, soyabeans, milk, celery, mustard, sesame seeds, wheat, tree nutes, crustacean shellfish, lupni, molluscs
Arsenic	Naturally occurring element	Wheat bread, rice, milk, dairy products and drinking water
Ciguatera Toxin	Naturally occurring element	Barracuda, grouper, red snapper, eel, amberjack, sea bass and Spanish mackerel
Melamine	Food manufacturing and processing chemical	Pet food, orange juice, coffee and dairy products
Heavy Metals	Naturally occurring element	Water, meat, fish, shellfish, fruit and vegetables, canned foods, cereals
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons	Food processing by-product	Smoked fish, smoked meat, oils and fats
Scombrotoxin	Naturally occurring element	Tuna, skipjack, bonito and mackerel
Antibiotics	Food manufacturing and processing chemical	Meat, poultry, fish, eggs and honey
Bisphenol A	Food manufacturing and processing chemical	Canned fruit, vegetables, coffee, tea and infant formula

Physical Hazards:

Physical hazards can include intrinsic or extraneous matter. Illness and injury can result from hard foreign objects in food. They can originate from various sources. For example, some products have natural physical hazards such as feathers or shells that are natural to source. There are then extrinsic sources such as plastic, glass or metal that can be introduced during the manufacturing process.

Physical Hazard	Source	Effect
Bone	Raw materials, improper processing	Choking, dental damage
Personnel	Poor employee practice, inadequate use of PPE	Cuts, infection, choking
Glass	Bottles, jars, light fixtures, utensils, guage covers	Cuts, bleeding
Insects	Raw materials, fields, access through holes	Illness, choking
Meta	Raw materials, personnel, maintenance tools, processing equipment	Lacertations, dental damage
Plastic	Fields, packagin material, equipment, employees	Choking, Cuts, Infection
Stones	After harvesting from crops, buildings or presonnel	Choking, dental damage
Wood	Pallets, equipment, fields	Cuts, infection, choking

What does this mean for your Food Safety Management Plan?��

Not only are understanding Hazards and incorporating a HACCP plan a legality for Food Safety Managers, but it is applicable to every employee, across every industry sector of the supply chain, and takes the whole team to avoid risk. While risks are always present, developing a Food Safety Plan to be followed by all employees at all levels allows for prevention, minimization or elimination. When not properly addressed, any one of these hazards, in addition to delivery of unsafe food products to consumers, can lead to costly product waste and recalls, negative exposure in the media, loss of reputation, lawsuits, retraining costs, and increased insurance costs – leading to heavy costs for lack of understanding or implementation.

A food safety management system puts best practices and principles together in one mainstream strategy for your food business. Setting up this system should include: identifying hazards through hazard analysis; identify actions to control the hazards; and constant document and procedure review to analyze effectiveness.

Overall, ensuring a proper food safety management plan with focus on preventing and eliminating potential hazards starts with understanding the hazards and helps to ensure food is safe, prevents food poisoning and decreases food waste.

How do we incorporate Hazards into our Food Safety Plan?��

When conducting the Hazard Analysis any potential hazard that could occur at each step in the process should be listed and risk assessed. This will help to identify those hazards that cause significant risk and that their elimination or reduction of levels is pertinent to food safety.

The assessing of the hazards should where possible include the following:

Review of incoming materials.
Evaluating the processing operations for the potential hazards.
Observation of actual practices.
Take measurements of important processing parameters.
Analyze the measurements to interpret the data correctly.

Examples of Hazards by Category

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What is Food Safety Management Software (FSMS)?

Wed, 28 Sep 2022 11:24:40 +0000

What is Food Safety Management Software (FSMS)?

What is a food safety management system or software (FSMS)? According to the regulation(EC) No 852/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 Apr 2004 on the hygiene of foodstuffs, Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) plans are established and required for the food business. (extended reading: What is HACCP, and how can we build a better HACCP plan?)��

Food safety management systems (FSMS) are systematic methods for controlling risks to the safety of food products within a food manufacturing plant, helping ensure that the products produced are safe for consumers. Food safety management software provides a more cost-efficient, time-saving and traceable option to enhance food safety standards across the industry.

Food safety compliance software is the management system capable of managing food safety by reviewing the physical, biological, and chemical hazards of the procurement, manufacturing, and handling of raw materials. Food businesses should produce food according to the systematic approach to the identification, evaluation, and control of food safety hazards (, subcategory: , , , ) to ensure the food quality and food safety for preventing potential foodborne illness, to provide a systematic approach to controlling food safety hazards in your food business and to ensure the food safety standard complies with the most global food safety standards.

What is Food Safety Management Software (FSMS)?
How does a Food Safety Management Software (FSMS) work?
Seven principles of HACCP
How does Food Safety Management Software help food companies?
What are the benefits to Enterprise Companies when adopting Food Safety Management Software?
What are the benefits to Small and Medium Companies when adopting Food Safety Management Software?
Should my food business get a Food Safety Management Software (FSMS)?

How does a Food Safety Management Software (FSMS) work?

Food safety management systems follow a series of procedures that define the steps that food business operators should take to maintain quality control and comply with international standards and regulations established by state and federal governments. A Food Safety Management System (FSMS) is a controlled process to handle food safety, ensuring all food products produced meet quality standards and are safe for consumption. Through several specifications and procedures, a food safety management system will ensure that the end product delivered to consumers is safe to eat and does not contain any health hazards.

In simple terms, Food Safety Management Systems (FSMS) are programs explicitly established by manufacturers to make sure operators in the food and beverage industries produce products that are safe for human consumption.��

Seven Principles of HACCP

Conducting hazard analysis
Determining the critical control points (CCP)
Establishing critical limits (CL)
Establishing monitor procedure to control the CCP’s
Taking corrective action when CCP is not under controlled
Verifying the procedures for operations��
Retaining documentation for tracing back if the HACCP is working effectively

There are various food business types, and each business has its own CCP, which requires the FSMS to be built by industry insiders to provide the best practice for daily operations and ensure the highest food safety standard is achievable.��

Basic FSMS may provide your business with a set of instructions from templates, allowing you to upload according to the instructions. Being an advanced FSMS across the food safety industry, X��° does not just provide you with a folder of generic documents and the professional service to set up the best practice for your business.

A group of experienced food experts designed an ultimate solution dedicated to the food industry to provide streamlined systems, insightful solutions, and integrated dashboards for improving food business operation efficiencies. In 2010, the X��° Food Safety Management Software (also named Food Safety management plan, one of the thirty-five preset modules) was launched and used by the food manufacturers.��

Beneficial Food Safety Management Software can provide regulatory compliance with ISO standards while aggressively controlling risks and hazards during food production. With food safety software acting as a quality management system tailored for the food industry, companies can meet compliance requirements established by various global governmental agencies.��

How does Food Safety Management Software help food companies?

A food safety management system makes it far more likely to detect physical, chemical, or biological hazards early, mitigating physical effects and associated risks. Through several specifications and procedures, food safety management systems ensure the end product, when it arrives at a consumer, is safe to eat and does not contain any health hazards. If the system is paper-based, it is significant to work to maintain the HACCP principles. Many issues often arise during its application, and paperwork is one of the biggest challenges, as well as inaccurate information.

Time-saving:

According to , a proper FSMS can cut business operator’s workload by at least 50%. With the correct Food Safety Management System, food companies can ensure that their customers are purchasing a high-quality, safe food product that has passed a series of food safety procedures and follows the best practices on food handling. With fewer recalls or safety violations, your customers will increasingly trust your brand for providing quality products in the food and beverage industry.��

Quality assured:

According to and a , food businesses with certification to third-party food safety standards are substantially less likely to experience an intervention than those without certification. Using FSMS to manipulate the food safety procedures can reduce the fault from human error and provide realistic and reliable data for auditing.

Making audits easier:

Everything that interacted with the FSMS will be stored on the cloud, including the activity logs, the documents submitted, and the procedures taken will be saved automatically. Being audited to different standards, organisations would be difficult to navigate without a FSMS, especially with varying requirements from other standards. Using the coherent system ensures the documents are aligned and traceable when you are being audited.

What are the benefits for Enterprise Companies when adopting Food Safety Management Software?

To run a global food business, you should invest in a world-class Food Safety Management System.

Typical challenges for Enterprise food businesses are:

Increasing Costs: Maintaining a global Food Safety Management System on paper, such as Excel, and other inefficient software platforms can cost you millions in unnecessary overheads and product failures every year. X��° allows you to concentrate all site, business unit and group systems into one common platform resulting in significant savings.

Fragmented Local Systems: A common challenge of large enterprise food businesses is the lack of standardisation across their food safety systems in local plants. Projects attempting to address this through standard software solutions typically fail. X��° is a proven web-based solution that makes it easy for business groups to roll out systems, workflows and best practices corporate-wide quickly. The system can be deployed globally and managed centrally.

Lots of data – but no oversight:��

Enterprise food businesses, by their nature, generate significant amounts of data which need to be managed. Much of this data is used for compliance, but its value in business process oversight and improvement is seldom realised. X��° provides a platform that allows you to manage the compliance data and drive improvement based on solid reporting.

X��° can help you standardise the Enterprises’ ERP systems and processes across the business group with multiple languages supported. The reports and alerts modules help you automate and streamline reporting and create automatic alerts; With a dedicated professional services team’s guidance, we help enterprises build a better culture toward better food safety.

What are the benefits for Small and Medium Enterprise Companies when adopting Food Safety Management Software?

As an SME in food manufacturing, X��° is the only food safety management software you’ll ever have to invest in. Typical challenges of small & medium food businesses come from:

Maintaining Compliance – getting certified and maintaining standards requires a large effort from your team. X��° brings all your systems together in one package making compliance faster, cheaper and more accessible.

Lack of resources – large companies can buy their way out of problems by hiring consultants, lawyers and managers. X��° makes it easier for small and medium businesses to maintain the Food Safety Management System without spending on new hires.

Not enough time – Lean management teams typically need to wear several hats leaving limited time to stay on top of and complete day-to-day compliance tasks. By automating many of these tasks, X��° allows managers to get the job done efficiently and free them up to run the business.

When adopting X��°, our compliance modules will help you become and remain compliant against retailer technical standards, third-party certifications and local legislation. The software has been developed from the ground up to meet and exceed these requirements. When your company grows, you don’t want your systems and compliance requirements to become the limiting factor. Our software will help you expand faster by making food safety and quality management a problem of the past. The team behind X��° consists of experienced quality managers, auditors, trainers and university lecturers. By becoming a X��° user, you can tap into the years of experience through the product.

Should my food business get a Food Safety Management Software (FSMS)?

In simple summary – yes – if you want to secure and scale your food business. The most efficient way to ensure consumers receive safe and reliable food products is by adopting the required practices and technologies throughout food supply chains and manufacturing facilities – difficult to be documented well when using paper-based systems. Not only must the essential safety standards be met, but it is also essential for consumers to receive the highest-quality food products. By ensuring quality compliance and safety standards are met at every step of the supply chain, you can be assured that you are providing the best products to customers.��

Compliance software helps build a successful food supply chain system within the food industry. It is safe to say software will help food companies ensure consumers are eating safe food items and meats. Fortunately, safety modernisation opportunities are available to food-industry businesses, from real-time risk analytics to business intelligence tools.�� With food safety management software, you can keep up to date on daily operations and better prepare for pending health inspections with no stress. An excellent management system will allow you and

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Food Safety Knowledge – X����°

What is Single Sign On and why do we offer it?����

What is Single Sign On?

Benefits of SSO

Talk to us to learn more

Alcoa+ Principles: What can the food industry learn from life sciences

What is ALCOA+

Attributable

Legible

Contemporaneous

Original

Accurate

Complete

Consistent

Enduring

Available

How to apply ALCOA+?

Should I implement single sign-on (SSO) for food safety management software?

Should I implement single sign-on (SSO) for food safety management software?

What is Single Sign-On (SSO)?

Benefits of using Single Sign-On in your food sites:

1. Improved Security

2. Simplified User Experience

3. Increased Efficiency

4. Reduced X���� Costs

Conclusion

How do Chemical Hazards occur in the Food Safety Process?

How do Chemical Hazards occur in the Food Safety Process?

How do Chemical Hazards occur in Different Types of Food Products?

How are Food Allergens and Marine Toxins Categorised as Chemical Hazards?

What are Marine Biotoxins and How do They Occur?

What are the Various Sources and Types of Chemical Hazards in Food Production?

What Measures can be Put in Place to Control Chemical Hazards in Food Production?

Conclusion

How do Physical Hazards Occur in the Food Safety Process?

How do Physical Hazards Occur in the Food Safety Process?

What are the Physical Hazards in Food?

Common Physical Hazards: A Closer Look

How do Physical Hazards Occur in the Food Safety Process?

Physical Hazard Prevention: A Step-by-Step Guide

The High Cost of Cross-Contamination in the Food Sector

The High Cost of Cross-Contamination in the Food Sector

What are the types of food contamination?

Biological Contamination

Chemical Contamination

Physical Contamination

What is Cross-Contamination in Food Enterprises?

Why Cross-Contamination Matters to Food Enterprises?

How to Prevent Cross-Contamination and Reducing the Risk of Costly Incidents in Food Businesses?

Ensuring Employee Training and Knowledge in Preventing Cross-Contamination in Food Businesses

What are the five useful steps for preventing cross-contamination?

Conclusion

Novel Food Regulation: EFSA versus FDA

Novel Food Regulation: EFSA vs. FDA

What defines Novel Food?

How does the European Food Safety Authority classify Novel Foods?

Placing Novel Foods on The Union List

How are Novel Foods defined by the Food and Drug Administration?

How does the FDA qualify a GRAS substance?

Complete Guide to Food Cooking Temperature Control

Dodging the Danger Zone: A Complete Guide to Food Cooking Temperature Control

What is temperature control, and why is it so important to food safety?

How do I verify that cooked food is at the correct temperature?��

1. In-Process/Continuous

2. Out of Process

3. Spot Check

4. Finished Product Checks

5. Storage Checks

A precise guide to temperature control food safety

What is the difference between verifying internal and external food temperatures?

What are the requirements for food receiving temperature?��

7 Ways Compliance Management Platforms Improve Operational Efficiency of Food Manufacturers

Seven Ways Compliance Management Platforms Improve Operational Efficiency of Food Manufacturers

Promote global standards

Improve traceability

Ensure regulatory compliance

Streamline food safety audits

Bring the supply chain closer to home and consumer

Reduce food waste and recall risk

Enhancing productivity and profitability

Food Safety Knowledge – X��°

What is Single Sign On and why do we offer it?��

4. Reduced X�� Costs

Novel Food Regulation:
EFSA vs. FDA

Dodging the Danger Zone:
A Complete Guide to Food Cooking Temperature Control