There has been a lot of changes to food safety standards in 2022. SALSA food moving to version 6, SALSA plus beer to the new version 4 and BRCGS food to version 9.
With the evolving world we live in accreditation requirements must also move with the times. The changes may seem like a headache to come to terms with. However, remember that the new requirements are there to aid a business make and sell safe products to consumers. Safe food sells.
What do I need to do?
Regardless of the safety standard that a company is working towards or the products made, implementing changes in new versions of a safety standard require following the same route. Begin by bringing together the team dealing with the food safety aspects. Secondly, theHaccp team and also the external food safety consultant (if you use one).
Look and analyse changes in the new version of the standard because it is essential to understand how each affects business processes.
Guidance and interpretation notes are published alongside a new safety standard and are there to help. The interpretation of the new standard can be the most challenging part of an update.
Changes to Food Safety Standards requires Team Effort
Look at your staff team and decide who is now responsible for creating any new documents and changes to procedures. Finally who is responsible for implementing them into production once authorised?
When creating the changes required bring in the relevant department managers/supervisors to get their feedback before implementing because it ensures the changes are feasible.
By employing an external food safety consultant, they can expertly interpret the new standard and how it best fits into existing systems. As well as saving resources, the food safety consultant can guide on how to maximise the potential opportunities changes can bring, such as, improving internal processes.
Staff Training
With changes to the food safety system staff training can bring everyone relevant up to speed. It is important that staff understand the reasoning behind the changes. Changes to routine can be difficult to remember at all times. Therefore, if they understand the importance behind the changes, they are more likely to remember the new routine.
Food Safety Standards & Maintenance
Once the food safety system includes the new version and implemented into the site, the Haccp team should meet together and review the Haccp process flow, risk assessment and any CCP’s. After implementing any amendments to Haccp, a full review and internal audit can look at system performance against new standard. This helps highlight any parts of the system which are struggling with the new changes.
Using an external food safety consultant to conduct a food safety system review is recommended. This allows for a fresh set of eyes to review the whole system and it’s culture, pin pointing any potential gaps which need rectifying.
