ISO 22000 is an important safety measure which is provided for food safety. The ISO 22000 is a food safety management system brought by the International Organization for Standardization which can be applied to any organization dealing with food products at any point of their production process. Being certified to the ISO 22000 makes it possible for implementing a lot of methods that will facilitate a safer environment and process for food production and handling. Nowadays, there are more concerns with regards to the safety of the food products, and to instill trust and confidence in their hearts and minds, there needs to be a perfect the system in place to oversee the production.
HACCP is an internationally recognized system. Implementation of a HACCP needs the prerequisite implementation of HACCP Plans and Prerequisite programs. Prerequisite programs are put in place to ensure a hygienic environment and a good manufacturing process for personnel that reduces the risk of contamination of the food products. The HACCP Plans are prepared for each process or product, to identify the possible hazards, and to enable checks to make sure hazards are eliminated or controlled.
The ISO 22000 family of certification has incorporated in its fundamental tenets, the Quality Management system approach with regards to the operations, the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) for the reduction of safety hazards in food. Then there are prerequisite programs, which are programs and practices put in place to address the role the production environment plays in producing safe products.
All major Food Safety Management Systems Standard and Certification Programs are based on the HACCP principles, including the ISO 22000. Although the primary
purpose of the HACCP is to protect people from foodborne illnesses, the benefits of the System can extend to the company as well. The HACCP enables the company to:
- Have products of increased quality.
- Expand its reach to more markets and customers
- Reduce Liability
- Effective process management
- Improves quality and consistency
- The ISO 22000 requires that there should be a Food Safety Management System.
- This calls for proper documentation and cohesive implementation of standards
and principles throughout the vicinity and the facility. Such standards and
processes are these - Food Safety Policy for the entire organization, developed by the top brass of your organization.
- Effective communications network.
- An Emergency Plan.
- Holding management review meetings to evaluate the performance of the Food
Safety Management System. - A traceability system for identification of a product
- A Corrective action system and control of nonconforming product
- A Documented Procedure for handling the withdrawal of the product.
The ISO 22000 family consists of a number of standards, each focusing on
different aspects of food safety management.\
- ISO 22000:2005 – Guidelines for Food Safety Management
- ISO 22004:2014 – Advice on the application of ISO 22000
- ISO 22005:2007 – Traceability in the feed and food chain
- ISO/TS 22002-1:2009 -Specific prerequisites for food manufacturing
- ISO/TS 22002-2:2013 – Specific prerequisites for catering
- ISO/TS 22002 -3:2011 – Specific prerequisites for farming
- ISO/TS 22002 – 4:2013 – Specific prerequisites for food packaging and
manufacturing - ISO/TS 22003:2013 – Guidelines for audit and certification bodies
ISO 27000 is very helpful. ISO 27000 is a documented food safety management system. It is aimed for all those who want to excel in food processing and manufacturing industry. Some of these will not have the system in place and some of them might do but haven’t gone the extra effort to document it and implement complementary standards. With the ISO 27001, there will be a documented system implemented as well as checks at different stages of the process. There will be the recognition of having a management system in place, but also the benefit of a quality management system and the safety of producing a safe product for all of your customers.
