Module 14. ISO/HACCP certification
Lesson 32
GUIDELINES FOR OBTAINING ISO/HACCP CERTIFICATION FOR DAIRY PLANTS
32.1 Introduction
ISO (International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards bodies. The main aim of the ISO is to encourage the development of standardization and related activities in the world in order to facilitate international exchange of goods and services. Further, it emphasizes on developing cooperation in the spheres of intellectual, scientific, technological and economic activity. The results of ISO technical work are published as International Standards.
The ISO 9000 family of standards represents an international consensus on good management practices with a view to ensure that the organization can time to time deliver the product or services that meet the client’s quality requirements. These good practices have been distilled into a set of standardized requirements for a quality management system, regardless of what your organization does, its size, or whether it is in the private, or public sector. The family of ISO 9000 standards has been developed by ISO and comes out in the main standards.
a) ISO 9000:2000 – Fundamentals and Vocabulary.
b) ISO 9001:2000 – Quality Management Systems -Requirements.
c) ISO 9004:2000 – Quality Management Systems-Guidelines for performance improvements.
d) ISO 19011: 2002 – Guidelines for quality and/or environmental management systems auditing.
32.3 HACCP
Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) is a preventive system of food control. It follows investigation and analysis at every stage of a food-related operation to discover and assess hazards; determining the 'critical control points' at which action is required to control the identified hazards; establishing the critical limits that must be met at, and procedures to monitor each critical control point; establishing remedial procedures when a deviation is identified by monitoring; documentation of the HACCP plan and verification procedures to establish that it is working effectively.
HACCP was developed originally as a microbiological safety system in the early days (1960s) of the US manned space programme, as it was vital to ensure the safety of food for astronauts. A hazard in the HACCP system is a biological, chemical or physical agent in, or condition of food, with the potential to cause an adverse effect whereas “Critical Control Point” (CPP) is a step at which control can be applied and is essential to prevent or eliminate a food safety hazard or reduce it to an acceptable level. The HACCP system and guidelines for its application were developed by the Codex Committee for Food Hygiene on the Codex Alimentarius Commission. The HACCP system and guidelines were published in 1993 and revised in 1997.
32.4 HACCP (15000) and Milk Plants
Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) is a process control system designed to identify and prevent microbial and other hazards in food production. It includes steps designed to prevent problems before they occur and to correct deviations as soon as they are detected. Such preventive control system with documentation and verification are widely recognized by scientific authorities and international organizations as the most effective approach available for producing safe food.
India being a signatory to WTO, the agreement on Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) makes it obligatory to adopt the standards, guidelines and recommendations issued by Codex Alimentarius Commission, which advocates the adoption of HACCP. The Indian Standard on ‘Food Hygiene-Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) - System and Guidelines for Its Application’ IS 15000:1998 is technically equivalent to the Codex document on the subject. For food industry in India, adoption of HACCP is becoming imperative to reach global standards, demonstrate compliance to Regulations/Customer requirements besides providing safer food to our millions.
32.5 HACCP and ISO 9000
The ISO 9000 family of standards is generic in nature and has been developed to assist organizations of all types and sizes that wish to implement and operate a quality management system (QMS). There are no restrictions on its implementation by any sector of industry, including the food and drink industry. Large and small companies that process and/or package food products worldwide have implemented ISO 9000 and obtained third-party certification. These companies may also use HACCP or similar systems as part of their quality assurance system. Some companies are using both ISO 9000 and HACCP as an integrated food safety and quality management system.
ISO 9000 focuses on customer needs and expectations, and one of the most important customer expectations is to have safe food products. Applying HACCP within an ISO 9000 QMS can result in a food safety system that is more effective than applying ISO 9001 or HACCP separately. The emphasis of both systems is prevention rather than correction of problems or deficiencies after they occur. A company implementing a HACCP system does not have to comply with ISO 9001 but it is desirable.
32.5.1 National HACCP system standards
National HACCP system standards have been developed in many countries. Certification bodies provide third party certification to companies that implement such standards. For example, Det Norske Veritas (DNV), an international certification body, provides an accredited Food Safety System certification to Danish Standard DS 3027, Requirements of Food Safety according to HACCP.
The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) provides two certification schemes to the food industry, the first for a HACCP system alone, and the second for a combined HACCP and ISO 9000 system:
· Food Safety Certification against Indian Standard IS 15000: 1998, Food Hygiene - Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) - System and Guidelines for its Application.
· The HACCP-based Quality Management System Certification provides for two certifications through one audit; certification of the quality system to Indian Standard IS/ISO 9000, and certification of HACCP to IS 15000:1998.
32.5.2 ISO 22000 includes HACCP
The ISO 22000, published on 1st September, 2005 is a new international standard designed to ensure safety in food supply chain being the first family on food safety management system over the world.
ISO 22000: 2005, food safety management system is required for the organization in chain. This provides the standards which have been developed in consultations with the experts from the food industry with representations of special international organizations. This is further done with close cooperation with the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC). This body is jointly established by the United Nations food and agriculture organization (FAO) over World Health Organization (WHO) to develop food standards.
ISO 22000 being new standard developed will make easier for organizations worldwide and implement the codex HACCP system for hygienic food chain, which does not vary with the country as well as food product concerned.
ISO 22000 is designed to permit all types of organization engaged in food chain to follow a safety management system. The coverage starts from food producers, primary producers, food manufactures, transport and storage to retail and food services outlay. It also includes organizations dealing with producers of equipment, packaging material, cleaning agents, additives and ingredients. The standard has become essential and important to implement due to the visible increase of illness caused by infected food in both developed and developing countries. Side effect of the health hazards give rise to economic loss to the consumer for medical treatment, absence from work, insurance payments of legal compensation.
ISO 22000 also includes the principles of HACCP and covers the requirements of key standards developed by various retailers’ syndicates worldwide in a single document. The important point of concern in the ISO 22000 is that it includes the implementations of HACCP that are the food hygiene principles developed by this body.
The design of ISO 22000 was rely on the assumptions that the most effective food safety systems are developed and operated are incorporated into the overall management system of the organization.
The ISO 22000 can be implemented on its own, since it is designed the fully matching with ISO 9001:2000 to ISO 9001 will find it easy. It will also be easy to extend this certification for the companies already certified to ISO 9001.
Benefit of users
The organizations using the ISO 22000 Standards provide its following benefits:
1. Optimization
of internal resources along with the food chain.
2. Superior
documentation.
3. Better
planning, little post-process verification.
4. More
proficient and active control of food safety hazards.
5. Systematic
organization of pre-requisite program’s.
6. Valid
basis for tasking decisions.
32.6 ISO 22000:2005 Family
1) ISO/IS 22004, food safety managements systems provide guidance on the application of ISO 22000:2005 on small and medium size enterprises around the world.
2) ISO/IS 22003, food safety managements provide audit and certification of food safety management system, provide guidance for the accreditation (approval) of ISO 22000 certification bodies.
3) ISO 22005, traceability in the food and food chain general principles and guidance for system design and development.
1. Determine
the roles for those in management and manufacturing to record all of the
procedures, policies and requirements for the systems of your company. Also,
job descriptions and functions should be recorded. All process information and
documents should be organized before proceeding with the certification process.
2. Implement
the documentation into your business through training and understanding the
step-by-step procedures. A technical writer may be helpful for implementing the
documents and make it to understand to employees of the organization. Make sure
that the employees should know the importance and understanding of all process
information that has been documented for obtaining ISO certification.
3. Perform
audits internally to make sure all of the employees understand the
documentation and successfully follow the procedures. If there are any errors
found during the audits, than the necessary steps are to be taken to create corrective
actions so that there are no further chances of recurrences.
4. After applying for certification, an ISO representative may come to
your business place to observe the procedures in action and will fix time with
you to discuss the success of your implementation process. Some website
addresses for obtaining ISO certification are given below:
o ISO Certification Delhi,www.isoregistration.in
ISO 9001, ISO 14000, ISO 22000
ISO 27000, HACCP Certification
o ISO Certification www.eqfscertification.in
Get Accredited ISO 9001, ISO
14001, ISO 22000,OHSAS 18001 Certification
o ISO certification, www.qatechnicindia.com
Selected references
Bureau
of Indian Standards, Manak Bhavan
, 9 Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, New Delhi-110002.
Greg
Lindberg, eHow Contributor How to Obtain ISO
Certification | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com.
Roget
Frost 2005. ISO 22000 is first Family of food safety management system
standards, 16, ISO, Management Systems.
Jacob Faergemand and Dort Jespersen 2005. Key elements and
benefits of ISO 22000 , 18, ISO Management System.
www.iso.org