About this Video

• Video Title: Tu Plan APPCC (Análisis de Peligros y Puntos de Control Críticos) sin errores - Episodio nº 2
• Channel: Marife Montes Luna
• Speakers: Marife Montes Luna
• Duration: 00:55:44

Introduction

This podcast episode focuses on practical application of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) plans in the food industry. The speaker, Marife Montes Luna, highlights common errors made during the 12 steps of HACCP plan implementation, offering advice for improvement and emphasizing a preventative approach to food safety.

Key Takeaways

1. Team Formation: A multidisciplinary HACCP team is crucial, including personnel from various levels (management to production) and expertise (quality control, production, microbiology, etc.). The team needs a designated leader with extensive training in hazard analysis.
2. Product Description: Thoroughly describe the product, including ingredients, origin, physical/chemical properties, processing methods, packaging, storage, shelf life, allergens, and potential for misuse. Distinguish this from the technical description for clients.
3. Intended Use: Define how the product will be used by the consumer and the potential for misuse or improper handling. Consider different consumer groups (e.g., infants, elderly) and all points in the supply chain.
4. Flow Diagram: Create a detailed flow diagram showing every step of production, including raw material reception, processing, packaging, and distribution. Include all relevant parameters (temperature, time), points of control, and potential for contamination.
5. On-site Verification: Verify the flow diagram on-site to ensure accuracy. Include all relevant data and check all production stages across different shifts and timeframes.
6. Hazard Identification: Systematically identify all hazards (biological, chemical, physical, allergens, fraud, sabotage). Specify the nature and source of each hazard.
7. Critical Control Point (CCP) Identification: Identify CCPs for each hazard using a decision tree. Quantify probabilities and severities for consistent risk assessment and avoid including all hazards in the decision tree indiscriminately.
8. Critical Limits: Define measurable critical limits for each CCP. These limits should differentiate between safe and unsafe products.
9. Monitoring System: Establish a clear monitoring system, specifying what is being monitored, who is responsible, how monitoring is done, frequency, and data recording methods.
10. Corrective Actions: Develop predefined corrective actions for each CCP to address deviations and prevent recurrence. Focus on root cause analysis and continuous improvement.
11. Validation and Verification: Validate the HACCP plan's future effectiveness and verify its past performance through regular reviews. Use data from audits, incidents, complaints, and analytical results to evaluate efficacy.
12. Documentation: Maintain thorough documentation of all steps, including records, manuals, procedures, and work instructions. Ensure clarity and practicality for ease of use and review.

The podcast does not explicitly list 12 separate "common errors" in a numbered or categorized way. Instead, it discusses common mistakes within each of the 12 steps of developing a HACCP plan. To address your request, I'll outline the common mistakes mentioned within each step and suggest ways to avoid them, based on the speaker's recommendations. Remember that the podcast emphasizes a preventative, proactive approach throughout the entire process.

1. Team Formation:

• Mistake: Non-multidisciplinary team lacking experience and knowledge across various aspects of production and food safety. Leader lacks sufficient training.
• Avoidance: Create a team representing all relevant areas (production, quality control, maintenance, etc.), including personnel from different levels within the company. Ensure the leader has sufficient training and experience in hazard analysis.

2. Product Description:

• Mistake: Confusing product description with the technical description provided to clients; omitting crucial details.
• Avoidance: Create a comprehensive and confidential internal description including all aspects such as ingredients, origin, processing, packaging, storage, shelf life, allergens, and potential for misuse.

3. Intended Use:

• Mistake: Failing to consider all potential uses and misuses by consumers, and different consumer groups. Not considering the entire supply chain.
• Avoidance: Thoroughly analyze all plausible scenarios, from manufacturing to final consumption, including scenarios involving vulnerable consumer populations (e.g., infants, elderly).

4. Flow Diagram:

• Mistake: Creating generic diagrams; omitting crucial steps, points of control, and parameters; copying and pasting from other sources.
• Avoidance: Develop a detailed and specific flow diagram unique to the process, including all steps, potential hazards, and relevant parameters (temperature, time, etc.).

5. On-site Verification:

• Mistake: Insufficiently verifying all aspects of the flow diagram in situ; only checking the most crucial steps; not recording the verification process.
• Avoidance: Conduct a thorough on-site verification across all shifts and production periods, recording all relevant data and observations.

6. Hazard Identification:

• Mistake: Identifying hazards too generally; failing to specify the nature and source.
• Avoidance: Clearly identify each hazard by type (biological, chemical, physical, allergen, fraud, sabotage) and detail its source.

7. Critical Control Point (CCP) Identification:

• Mistake: Defining CCPs by stage rather than by hazard; failing to properly assess risks and use consistent criteria for determining significance; including all hazards in decision tree.
• Avoidance: Use a decision tree to identify CCPs based on hazard-specific risk assessments (probability and severity), applying the same criteria consistently. Only use significant hazards in the tree.

8. Critical Limits:

• Mistake: Establishing unmeasurable or ambiguous critical limits.
• Avoidance: Define clear and measurable critical limits for each CCP, ensuring they are easily monitored and interpreted.

9. Monitoring System:

• Mistake: Creating a monotonous or inflexible monitoring system; inadequate personnel training; lack of awareness regarding the consequences of failing to detect deviations.
• Avoidance: Establish a clear, practical system; train personnel thoroughly; ensure they are aware of the potential consequences of deviations.

10. Corrective Actions:

• Mistake: Predefining corrective actions without root cause analysis; not using them as a tool for continuous improvement.
• Avoidance: Establish a flexible system of corrective actions focusing on root cause analysis to prevent recurrence and enhance processes.

11. Validation and Verification:

• Mistake: Failing to properly validate future effectiveness and/or verify past performance.
• Avoidance: Establish clear methodologies for both validation (future) and verification (past) of the HACCP plan, regularly reviewing data to assess its efficacy.

12. Documentation:

• Mistake: Overly dense and impractical documentation.
• Avoidance: Maintain clear, concise, and practical documentation. Develop user-friendly manuals, procedures, and work instructions that support training and operational efficiency.

The podcast emphasizes that avoiding these mistakes requires a committed, knowledgeable team, and a proactive, preventative approach to food safety throughout the entire process.

Here are four questions, based on Marife Montes' podcast, developed to elicit deeper understanding of the HACCP plan creation process. Each question references specific details from the transcript:

1. What are the minimum parameters required to accurately describe a product in a HACCP plan, according to Marife Montes' recommendations? This question targets the second step of the HACCP plan. The podcast emphasizes that a complete description is needed. A successful answer should mention at least the following elements: composition (all raw materials and ingredients), origin of ingredients, physical and chemical properties (pH, water activity, moisture content), processing treatments (thermal, freezing, salting, etc.), packaging type, storage and distribution conditions, shelf life/expiration date, instructions for use, considerations for misuse, and a list of allergens and the potential for cross-contamination.

2. What are the key aspects that must be included in a HACCP flow diagram to ensure its completeness and accuracy, as discussed in the podcast? This question focuses on the fourth step. A complete answer should refer to the podcast's checklist: all raw materials (including packaging and other materials that come in contact with the product), the complete sequence of operations and interactions between different phases, any outsourced or subcontracted processes, critical control points (CCPs), a combination of control measures, possibilities of process delays, reprocessing, and recycling, separation of high-risk and low-risk areas (clean vs. dirty), and the output (finished products, intermediates, waste).

3. What are the most common errors made when defining critical limits in a HACCP plan, and how does Marife Montes suggest these errors be avoided? This question addresses the eighth step. The podcast highlights two critical errors: critical limits are not measurable, or they are too ambiguous. A good answer would mention that to avoid these issues, critical limits must be clearly defined, measurable (ideally in real-time), and objectively differentiate between safe and unsafe products. The podcast also emphasizes that each critical control point (CCP) requires at least one critical limit, which might comprise multiple parameters.

4. What types of data should be reviewed during the verification phase of a HACCP plan to ensure its effectiveness, according to Marife Montes? This question addresses the eleventh step of the HACCP plan, which involves reviewing past performance. The podcast explains that this verification (unlike validation, which focuses on the future) involves analyzing data compiled throughout the year. A comprehensive answer would include: data from internal audits, records of incidents where limits were exceeded, customer complaints (especially those related to food safety), records of product recalls or withdrawals, nonconformity reports, trends in analytical results, and other relevant data. The goal is to determine whether the system has been effective and to identify areas for improvement.

In conclusion, Marife Montes urges listeners to honestly self-assess their HACCP plans, using the points raised in the podcast to identify weaknesses. She encourages a thorough review of each of the twelve steps, paying close attention to the common errors she highlighted. She provides a link to her website where listeners can download notes summarizing the podcast, providing a checklist and guidance for future revisions. Finally, she encourages listeners to leave positive reviews and share the podcast to help it reach a wider audience.