HACCP is a management system in which food safety is addressed through the analysis and control of biological, chemical, and physical hazards from raw material production, procurement and handling, to manufacturing, distribution and consumption of the finished product.

HACCP is designed for use in all segments of the food industry from growing, harvesting, processing, manufacturing, distributing, and merchandising to preparing food for consumption.

The Codex Alimentarius is a collection of texts (standards, guidelines, and codes of practice) adopted by the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) established in 1963.

CAC is the central part of the joint Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and World Health Organization (WHO) Food Standards Programme and was established by FAO and WHO to protect consumer health and ensure fair practices in the
food trade.

Codex texts are based on sound scientific evidence and deal with ‘horizontal’ issues (e.g. ‘general subjects’ such as food hygiene, food additives, and contaminants, pesticide residues, and nutrition) or ‘vertical’ issues (e.g. commodities such as fresh fruits and vegetables, fats and oils and spices).

CXC 1-1969: The General Principles of Food Hygiene – Good Hygiene Practices (GHPs) and the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) System is one of the Codes adopted by Codex Alimentarious Commission and used as the criteria for Food Safety Management Systems.

CXC 1-1969: General Principles of Food Hygiene

The objectives of this code are to

• provide principles and guidance on the application of GHPs applicable throughout the food chain to provide food that is safe and suitable for consumption;
• provide guidance on the application of HACCP principles;
• clarify the relationship between GHPs and HACCP; and
• provide the basis on which sector and product-specific codes of practice can be established.

CXC 1-1969 provides a framework of general principles for producing safe and suitable food for consumption by outlining necessary hygiene and food safety controls to be implemented in production (including primary production), processing, manufacturing, preparation, packaging, storage, distribution, retail, foodservice operation and transport of food, and where appropriate, specific food safety control measures at certain steps throughout the food chain.

Food safety management systems based on the HACCP principles have been successfully applied in food processing plants, retail food stores, and foodservice operations. The seven principles of HACCP have been universally accepted by government agencies, trade associations, and the food industry around the world.

The HACCP system is designed, validated, and implemented in accordance with the following seven principles:

The general process is as follows:

1. Assemble HACCP team and identify scope
2. Describe product
3. Identify intended use and users
4. Construct flow diagram
5. On-site confirmation of flow diagram
6. List all potential hazards that are likely to occur and associated with each step, conduct a hazard analysis to identify the significant hazards, and consider any measures to control identified hazards (principle # 1)
7. Determine the critical control points (principle # 2)
8. Establish validated critical limits for each CCP (principle # 3)
9. Establish a monitoring system for each CCP (principle # 4)
10. Establish corrective actions (principle # 5)
11. Validation of the HACCP plan and verification procedures (principle # 6)
12. Establish documentation and record keeping (principle # 7)

Although the main goal of HACCP is food protection, there are other benefits acquired through HACCP implementation and certification, such as: