HACCP explained: a simple guide for food safety

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What is HACCP, in plain English?

HACCP is a practical method for preventing food safety problems before they happen. It helps you identify what could make food unsafe, decide where you must control the risk, and keep simple records that show you are in control. Most businesses use HACCP as part of a broader food safety management system, where routines and documentation support safe daily operations.

Why HACCP matters in real life

Most food businesses do not struggle with knowing what “good” looks like. They struggle with consistency during busy shifts. HACCP is useful because it turns intentions into repeatable routines:

• Fewer food safety incidents and complaints
• Easier onboarding and clearer responsibilities
• Less stress during inspections and audits
• Faster improvements when something goes wrong

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HACCP vs a Food Safety Management System

A food safety management system (FSMS) is the full setup: your daily routines, cleaning, allergen controls, temperature checks, traceability, training, and what you do when something goes wrong.

HACCP is the structured method within that system that focuses on:

• Identifying hazards
• Controlling the most important steps
• Proving you do it consistently

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The 7 HACCP principles, explained simply

You will often hear about “the 7 principles.” Here is what they mean in a way your team can use:

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1. Identify hazards

What could make food unsafe (microbiological, chemical, physical, allergens)

2. Determine critical control points (CCPs)

Where control is essential to prevent or reduce risk to an acceptable level (for example: cooking, chilling, cooling, reheating)

3. Establish critical limits

A clear target that must be met (often time or temperature)

4. Set up monitoring

How you check the CCP is under control (simple logs, checklists)

5. Define corrective actions

What you do when monitoring shows a limit was not met (reheat, discard, adjust process, retrain)

6. Verify the system works

Periodic checks: reviews, internal checks, calibration, trend checks

7. Keep records

Simple proof that checks happened and issues were handled

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What should a simple HACCP plan include?

A HACCP plan does not need to be long. In most restaurants, cafés, takeaways, catering and retail food settings, the best plan is short, clear, and used daily.

A practical HACCP plan usually includes:

• Your main processes (delivery, storage, prep, cooking, cooling, service)
• Key hazards for each step (including allergens where relevant)
• Your CCPs (the few steps where control matters most)
• Monitoring (who checks, how often, where you record it)
• Corrective actions (what happens if a check fails)
• Records (temperature logs, cleaning, allergens, maintenance, training, supplier notes)

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The most common HACCP mistakes (and how to avoid them)

Making the plan too detailed

If the plan is too big, it will not be followed. Start with the critical routines and expand gradually.

Monitoring that does not fit a busy shift

If a check takes minutes, it gets skipped. Checks should take seconds and be easy to complete.

Recording without action

A failed check is not solved when it is written down. It is solved when the problem is corrected and followed up.

Treating allergens as a separate topic

Allergens must be built into routines, training, and communication, not kept in a separate document nobody opens.

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How to implement HACCP in daily operations

If you are starting from scratch, this order works well:

1. Start with the critical routines

Cooking, cooling, chilling, reheating, hot holding, cleaning, allergens.

2. Define “what good looks like”

Clear limits, clear responsibilities, clear steps if something fails.

3. Make checks simple

Short logs and checklists that people actually complete.

4. Train the routine, not the theory

Briefly explain why it matters, then repeat the “how” until it becomes habit.

5. Review regularly

Look for repeated issues and fix the root cause, not just the symptom.

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HACCP and inspections: what to show

During an inspection or audit, the goal is to show that control exists in practice. You should be able to quickly show:

• Routine checks (temperatures, cleaning, allergens, deliveries)
• What you do when something goes wrong (corrective actions)
• That you follow up over time and improve
  

If your records are consistent and easy to access, inspections become far more predictable.

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