As food safety continues to be a worldwide public health issue, the need for improved and more effective food
safety systems has increased over the past three decades. A combination of national and international standards,
industry needs, customer demands and many other factors has led to tremendous improvements of Food Safety
Management Systems.
A brief history of HACCP
The concept of HACCP, being the acronym for Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points, was developed in the
1960s by a team of scientists and engineers from the Pillsbury Company. Their aim was to produce “zero defects”
food products for NASA astronauts. But the first HACCP standard was issued in late 80s by the U.S. National
Advisory Committee on the Microbiological Criteria for Food (NACMCF)1. After the first revision in 1992, it was
adopted by the Codex Alimentarius Commission2 and published as the first international HACCP standard.
Since then, it has been widely and successfully applied by the food industry and by regulatory authorities to
prevent and control risks associated with potential hazards that can cause food to be unsafe.
Is there any difference between “HACCP” and “the HACCP system”?
For people that are not involved in the food industry, HACCP and the HACCP system may sound like the same
thing, but in reality they differ.
HACCP is an industry-specific hazard assessment tool which focuses on preventing hazards rather than inspecting
end-products. This tool can be applied throughout the food chain from primary production to final consumption.
This is different from the HACCP system which is a universally recognized Food Safety System. The system
enables the identification and control of hazards that may occur in food production process. It focuses on
the prevention of potential hazards by strictly monitoring and controlling each critical control point of the food
production process. Even though the system initially consisted of three principles, over the years it has been
revised and many changes have been made in order to simplify and make its implementation easier. The initial
concept of HACCP has never changed.
The three original HACCP principles were:
1. Identification and assessment of hazards associated with the food product;
2. Determination of the critical control points to control the identified hazards; and
3. Establishment of a system to monitor the critical control points.
Currently, there are five preliminary steps and seven principles associated with application of the HACCP system
(see A). Preliminary steps are additional steps outlined by the Codex, which need to be completed before the
seven principles of HACCP are carried out. These steps ensure more effective establishment, implementation and
management of the HACCP system.
A. Application of the HACCP system in 12 steps
Five preliminary steps:
1. Assemble HACCP team
2. Describe the product
3. Identify intended use
4. Construct flow diagram
5. On-site confirmation of flow diagram