Cookery Food Safety Audit

Question: Discuss about theCookeryfor Food Safety Audit. Answer: Introduction Food safety audit has been one of the most vital concerns when it comes to the maintenance of food standards and certification as well. The subject has been argued as vital because of the transparency and safety assurance that it offers to consumers. A number of food companies and organizations across the globe usually undertake safety standards through food safety audits in order to assure the consumers or their clients of safety measures that are put in place (Dinham 2003). This has seen them grow in terms of business networking and increasing the consumption scale due to the built trust. This task will therefore discuss into finer details a food safety audit of an existing workplace in order to bring on board the necessities for a food safety program (Kvenberg and Schwalm 2010). It will also offer specific identification of any potential food safety hazards and also a sum of critical control concerns that may be in association with the hazards in question. The task will then end with an evaluation of the already existing practices so as to offer determination on any changes that may be necessary. Background The audit in context is based on a busy market environment where a number of food items are sold. This kind of environment will help in giving a wider view of the various food products as far as food safety is concerned. The nature of the environment in context will also assist in the identification of a number of food safety hazards. Determination of the Nature and Type of Workplace As mentioned in the background, the work place for food safety audit in context with regards to the development of the requirements of food safety program is based on a working environment that is busy and deals in a number of food products (Lees 2012). That working environment is a busy market place where people or consumers buys a number of products mainly for reasons that are consumption related. Identification of Potential Food Safety Hazards There are a number of food safety hazards that consumers are at risk to associate with if proper food safety audit is not undertaken. These hazards may be grouped in form of biological, physical and even chemical hazards. Biological hazards are those that may be caused by bacteria, viruses and even parasites that may find space into the food substances that are sold in the market (Mayes 2002). Physical hazards on the other hand, are those that may occur as foreign bodies that may come into contact with food. Examples of physical safety hazards include the following, metal, wood, soil, stone and dirt among others. All these have got a possibility of coming into contact with food substances and thereby making consumption difficult. The last potential hazard is that of chemical nature, a number of food specialists across the globe, have argued that, in most cases the hazard in question occur inform of cleaning chemical residues, factory contaminants and finally agricultural residues. Determination of the Specifics of the Organization Specific to Food Hazards There are a number of specifics of organizations that are specific to food hazards and most of them will be discussed in this section. Most organization specific to food hazards are usually of bigger sizes as they deal with critical matters globally. The bigger size also directly influences the clients that the organizations work with. It has been discussed that there are many clients who operate under the subject organizations for purposes of ensuring that the food product consumed is of higher quality (National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods 2012). An example of organization that we can peg our discussion to, is that of Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations that work in close collaboration with the ministry of health in Australia to ensure that food safety audit is undertaken. The type of food that the organization in context deals with is those that are agricultural and in most cases are sold in market workplace. On the same note, the examination on the layout of agricultural product is usually based on the storage facilities, preparation, and display and customer service points. Most agricultural product usually assumes open layout that can allow sustenance of the products, considering the fact that the product dealt with is also perishable. The preparation of the product is also done in a manner to preserve its nature so as be offered to customers or consumers when in better state. Identification of any at Risk Clientele Being that the food in context is based on agricultural products, the client at risk may be on reasons that of chemical hazards and physical hazards association to food product. This is because; the preservation of the food products may be call for use of certain preservative chemicals that may not go well with the clients (Panisello and Quantick 2011). On the other hand, it is also important to note that the workplace for the products is an open market; physical hazards may equally find space. On a similar notice, it has also been argued that agricultural products specifications are those that goes with their vulnerability and thus affected by the hazards mentioned. The tackled brief point also goes hand in hand with the product supplies and the quality assurance details. The final key area in this topic will be on determination of product safety requirement. Product safety requirement specific to the above workplace The first requirement is that the agricultural produce should be cleaned on any hazard They should be handled with care and concern to avoid contamination The workplace should be clean to offer a clean environment for business Critical Assessment of Food Handling Procedure The food handling procedure should always take into consideration the following concerns, food handling hazards, the hazards that are related to food heating, those that deals with food display, any other chemical or microbiological hazards and even concerns that are related to food susceptibility (Ropkins and Beck 2000). The handling of agricultural food products is an important aspect that must be done in a better procedure. The main hazard that is associated with the handling of the food in context is that of physical hazard, though chemical hazards may also find space. List of Critical Control Points that are Involved in Food Preparation where the Mentioned Hazard can be Controlled There are a number of control points that are associated with the hazards in question. The hazards in context are both physical and chemical. Most of the agricultural foods as mentioned in previous paragraphs are mainly in line with physical hazards because of close association of the two in context. The first control point with respect to the subject is that on key concerns to be undertaken during preparation (Sperber 2008). During food preparation, it is important that a number of concerns are considered, most of these concerns must be those that affirms or assures of food safety. The other critical control measure that should be looked upon should be that of ensuring protective handling measures are put in place. This is because physical hazards are mainly associated with problems that come out due to matters of poor handling of food. There are high chances that the food substance in context can have safety issues in relation to the handling procedures. On the same light, another vital critical control point is on display matters as covered previously. This is where chemical hazards are brought on board. Display matters are associated with preservative control related concerns. This is also in consideration that most of agricultural foods are perishable and therefore preservative measures must be given keen consideration but due to their chemical alignment, there may result chemical hazards (Trienekens and Zuurbier 2008). Evaluation of Existing Food Safety Procedures The subject evaluation is based on the already covered critical control points, matters of monitoring practices, record keeping, control of pest and finally cleaning and sanitation. It has been noted by a number of food safety experts across the globe that exist a number of food safety procedures in relation to the food in context. Some of the existing food safety procedures are based on matters of sanitation and handling procedures. This is majorly in consideration of hazards that have always been in existence. In this particular context, the hazards to be put in consideration includes biological, chemical and also physical. Matters of sanitation to food ensure that the environment in which food is kept is clean and does not offer any risk to the clients or the consumers of the product. The other evaluation that has been in existence is on matters that deal with food handling measures (Walker, Pritchard and Forsythe 2013). This is a procedure that is not only limited to food organization across the globe but also considered by clients in greater view. This is because of the risks that are associated with poor handling procedures. Conclusion In conclusion, the food safety audit in context has been tackled in line with the question and details rubric for the task and therefore offers a number of details that can be used in developing food safety program as per the requirement. The task is therefore with no doubt takes care on matters that relates with food safety procedures as provided in the details above. References Dinham, B., 2003. The pesticide hazard: a global health and environmental audit. Zed Books. Kvenberg, J.E. and Schwalm, D.J., 2010. Use of microbial data for hazard analysis and critical control point verificationFood and drug administration perspective. Journal of Food Protection, 63(6), pp.810-814. Lees, F., 2012. Lees' Loss prevention in the process industries: Hazard identification, assessment and control. Butterworth-Heinemann. Mayes, T., 2002. Simple users' guide to the hazard analysis critical control point concept for the control of food microbiological safety. Food Control, 3(1), pp.14-19. National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods, 2012. Hazard analysis and critical control point system. International Journal of Food Microbiology, 16(1), pp.1-23. Panisello, P.J. and Quantick, P.C., 2011. Technical barriers to hazard analysis critical control point (HACCP). Food control, 12(3), pp.165-173. Ropkins, K. and Beck, A.J., 2000. Evaluation of worldwide approaches to the use of HACCP to control food safety. Trends in Food Science Technology, 11(1), pp.10-21. Sperber, W.H., 2008. Auditing and verification of food safety and HACCP. Food Control, 9(2), pp.157-162. Trienekens, J. and Zuurbier, P., 2008. Quality and safety standards in the food industry, developments and challenges. International Journal of Production Economics, 113(1), pp.107-122. Walker, E., Pritchard, C. and Forsythe, S., 2013. Hazard analysis critical control point and prerequisite programme implementation in small and medium size food businesses. Food Control, 14(3), pp.169-174.