Developing a School Food Safety Program John Walker JTAK Food Safety

Objectives  Regulation  HACCP and its principles  Process Approach  Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)  Developing your Food Safety program

The Requirement  The Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004 requires school food authorities (SFAs) to implement a food safety program for the preparation and service of school meals served to children in the school year beginning July 1 st,  The program must be based on Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) principles and conform to guidance issued by the Department of Agriculture (USDA).  All SFAs must have a fully implemented food safety program that complies with HACCP principles or with this optional guidance no later than the end of the school year.

What?  HACCP is a food safety management system  Proactive vs Reactive  Minimize risk of hazards in a food preparation process  Food manufacturers vs retail food  Process Approach developed by FDA (for retail food)

Highly Susceptible Populations  "Highly susceptible population" means PERSONS who are more likely than other people in the general population to experience foodborne disease because they are:  (1) Immunocompromised; preschool age children, or older adults; and  (2) Obtaining FOOD at a facility that provides services such as custodial care, health care, or assisted living, such as a child or adult day care center, kidney dialysis center, hospital or nursing home, or nutritional or socialization services such as a senior center How much difference in immune system between a 4 year old and a 6 year old?

HACCP  First developed for the Apollo space program  Pillsbury, US Army Labs, and NASA  Required now for certain food processors (juice, seafood, meat a& poultry)  FSMA will make required for all food processors in future (HARPC)

Food Safety Program  Written plan for each individual school (similar operations)  Based on HACCP principles  Include  Sanitation  Temperature control  Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)

Definitions  Hazard Analysis – Review a process to determine risks  Control Measures – Result in risk reduction  Critical Control Points (CCPs) – Step in a process that is essential to food safety  Critical Limits – Measurable parameter, usually time and/or temperature  Process Approach – Method of grouping menu items into 3 separate categories  Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) – Written instructions for a food service task to reduce food safety hazards

Types of Hazards  Hazards specific to the preparation of the food  Non-specific hazards that affect all foods  Biological  Chemical  Physical  A good food safety management program controls both Specific and Non-specific hazards

Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)  Pre-requisite program  Foundation of HACCP  Step by Step written instructions for routine food service tasks  Some templates provided by USDA, NFSMI, ADEC

Other Prerequisite Programs  Employee training  Preventive Maintenance  Employee illness policy  Supplier/Vendor requirements  Food Allergen program

SOPs needed  Including but not limited to:  Personal hygiene  Employee illness  Receiving  Transport  Cleaning & Sanitizing  Temperature Monitoring  Thawing, Cooking, Cooling, & Reheating

Principles of HACCP  Hazard analysis  Critical Control Points  Critical Limits  Monitoring  Corrective Actions  Verification/Validation  Recordkeeping/Documentation  These principles are built into the Process Approach

Assemble your team

Process Approach  All menu items can be lumped together in 3 broad categories  Food kept cold from preparation through service  Prepared hot and served the same day hot  Food prepared hot and served cooled, or possibly reheated.

Process Flow Diagrams  A map of the sequence of steps followed to prepare a menu item (or group of menu items)  Can be used for groups of recipes Receive Store PrepServe

Identifying Critical Control Points  USDA recipes provide some Critical Control Points  Cooking  Hot Holding  Cooling  Perform a hazard analysis on each step in your process to identify high risk hazards and where in the process they can be controlled.

Process #1 – No Cook  Cold holding temperature  Time as a public health control

Process #2 – Same Day Service  Cooking  Hot holding  Time as a public health control

Process #3 – Complex Food Preparation  Cooking  Cooling  Hot or cold holding  Time as a public health control  Reheating for hot holding

Grouping Exercise

Critical Limits  A critical limit is a boundary which separates safe food from unsafe food.  A measurable value, such as time and/or temperature

Same CCP, different CL

Monitoring  Planned observation and documentation of Critical Limits  What should be monitored  When should the monitoring take place  How to measure (what equipment to use)  Who should be doing the monitoring

Corrective Actions  Actions to take if a critical limit is not met (or exceeded)  Pre-determined actions should be included in your HACCP plan  Always two parts to a corrective action:  How do we keep unsafe food from being served to our students?  How do we fix the root cause of the problem? Don’t be afraid to use and document corrective actions!

Recordkeeping  What records are we generating in this HACCP plan?  How did we develop the HACCP plan (HACCP team, written hazard analysis, selection of CCPs)  You can use pre-existing records  Receiving temperature on invoice  Production log

Types of Records  Records documenting SOPs  Time and temperature monitoring records  Corrective action records  Calibration records  Training logs  Receiving logs  Verification or review of records

Verification/Validation  These activities help us confirm that our HACCP plan is working  How do I know my thermometer is right?  Management review of records  Any reoccurring issues?  Review and revise HACCP plan at least annually  New equipment  New menu items  Inspection results

Employee training  Initial training  On-going training throughout the school year  Annual training on food safety principles  New hire training, including substitutes and volunteers  Maintain training records

For more information  SOP templates  NFSMI SOP templates -  NFSMI SOP creator -  ADEC Active Managerial Control (includes Wizard)  USDA Guidance 

Questions, Comment, Concerns? John Walker JTAK Food Safety PO Box 3606 Soldotna, AK