Food safety has been achieving significant importance over the last few decades, influencing the buyer, supplier and consumer. The quotation ‘a healthy mind is a healthy body’ rings true as a healthy lifestyle makes us more resilient, influential and cerebral.
Food is a significant part of a healthy lifestyle. Safe food is the responsibility of producers. This goal is not due to the efforts of any one person but is a joint venture of everyone in the supply chain from farm to fork, with the involvement of government oversight.
When the food safety team has a strong focus on following food safety rules and regulations, successful outcomes are more likely to result. While many food safety research organizations and certification programs exist, playing pronounced roles in the challenging implementation of food safety regulations, we need more than that.
Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) is an amazing and remarkable food safety system, which provides reliable food safety procedures. HACCP can easily be applied in ISO 9001–2015 Quality Management System and ISO 22000 Food Safety Management System standards.
The question becomes how to develop food safety awareness. In one respect, it is easy in the way qualified, trained and committed people with full support of top management make the implementation of a food safety system appear seamless. But there can be substantial challenges with internally weak systems and lack of top management commitment. Regardless, there is always a need to refresh one’s food safety knowledge by attending training workshops. Training is always a worthwhile investment if food safety is your main concern.
It is customary to strengthen your food safety foundation by implementing Good Manufacturing Practices in your facility and strictly follow them. Another simple but very powerful principle of Dr. W. Edwards Deming is the Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle.[1-4] It is an iterative four-step management method used in business for the control and continuous improvement of processes and products.
Utilizing these practices will result in the ultimate level of food safety, a goal for food producers along the entire food supply chain.
Muhammad Waheed, M.Sc., is a quality control specialist at Food Specialties, Canada, a privately owned company that supplies a wide variety of quality ingredients for international and local ice cream markets.
References
1. www.food-safety.com/magazine-archive1/december-2013january-2014/food-plant-sops-the-backbone-of-your-food-safety-system/.
2. www.food-safety.com/enewsletter/driving-success-in-your-food-business/.
3. www.food-safety.com/magazine-archive1/octobernovember-2013/what-defines-a-laboratory-quality-system/.
4. www.food-safety.com/magazine-archive1/augustseptember-2009/the-abcs-of-good-food-manufacturing/.
