Discover essential steps and practices for ensuring safe and suitable food in food processing. Learn how to prevent contamination and meet regulations with this guide.
Assessing food before it is processed is an important step in ensuring that the food is safe to eat. This includes checking for signs of spoilage, such as discoloration or off-odours, as well as testing for the presence of harmful microorganisms. Food may also be inspected for foreign objects, such as metal fragments, that could be dangerous if consumed.
Food businesses can take several measures to ensure that the food they process is safe and suitable for consumption. Some of these measures include:
Obtaining ingredients from reliable and trustworthy suppliers
Outlining the specific quality or safety standards required for the raw materials or food ingredients to the supplier, for example, ensuring that dried fruit does not contain any stones, and that food does not contain any detectable levels of pathogens such as Salmonella
Implementing procedures for properly receiving food
Evaluating the food before processing to establish whether it has been stored at temperatures that inhibit the proliferation of pathogenic bacteria.
If the food is potentially hazardous, determining if it has been stored at temperatures that prevent the growth of pathogenic bacteria.
Eliminating potential contaminants that may be present on the food before use, such as by washing fruits and vegetables
Implementing a food safety management system (FSMS) such as HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) to identify and prevent potential hazards in the food production process.
Regularly training employees on food safety, cleaning and sanitising and good manufacturing practices (GMPs) to ensure they are aware of the risks and how to prevent them.
Regularly inspecting and maintaining equipment and facilities to ensure they are clean and in good working order.
Properly storing raw materials and finished products to prevent contamination and cross-contamination.
Regularly monitoring the temperature of food during storage, cooking, and holding to ensure it is at safe levels.
Implementing a recall program in case of any food safety issues that might arise.
Regularly testing food samples for the presence of harmful microorganisms, including pathogenic bacteria.
Establishing a food traceability system to track food from the farm to the table and quickly identify and recall any food products that may be contaminated.
Complying with all relevant food safety regulations, such as those set by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration).
Always adhering to the principles of Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) and Good Hygienic Practices (GHPs) during the food processing.
These measures, when implemented and followed properly, can help to ensure that the food processed by a business is safe and suitable for consumption, and that the food safety risks are reduced as much as possible.
It is not typically expected for a retail food business to perform extensive testing on ingredients to confirm their safety and suitability. However, certain food manufacturers may require testing on ingredients that are essential to the safety and suitability of the finished product. This is particularly important when the ingredient is used in a food that will not undergo further processing to ensure safety, such as adding dried spices, herbs or other seasonings to a snack food after a heat processing step. In these cases, the food business should have confidence that these ingredients do not contain pathogens, such as Salmonella, and may include microbiological testing as part of their supplier assurance program.
Thank you for checking out our blog post on food safety and environmental health. We hope you found it informative and useful.
We are always looking to improve and provide valuable content for our readers. If there are any specific topics you would like us to explore or if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to us on our contact page. We would love to hear from you!