Food Safety Standard 3.2.1 - Food Safety Programs
(Updated September 2005)
Note: The Food Safety Standards do not apply in New Zealand. The provisions of the food standards treaty between Australia and New Zealand do not include food hygiene standards.
What is this standard?
This standard is based on the internationally accepted principle that the best way of keeping food safe is to control the hazards that can arise during the production, manufacture and handling of food. To that end, Standard 3.2.1 Food Safety Programs supports Standard 3.2.2 Food Safety Practices and General Requirements and Standard 3.2.3 Food Premises and Equipment. Under Standard 3.2.1 Food Safety Programs a business must be able to show that it complies with the other two standards through an independent audit process.
Food safety programs - background to the standard
In October 1999, State and Territory Health Ministers did not agree to a proposal to implement food safety programs for Australian food businesses. Ministers agreed instead that further research should be undertaken into the incidence of food borne illness in Australia and the costs of implementing food safety programs. Ministers were concerned to ensure that the benefits of requiring food safety programs outweighed the costs.
However, as some States and Territories were planning to introduce food safety programs for some classes of business, Ministers agreed that in the interests of national consistency, Standard 3.2.1 Food Safety Programs should be adopted into the Food Standards Code as a model standard. What this means is that those States or Territories that do introduce a requirement for food businesses to have a food safety program, must ensure the requirement is consistent with what is in Standard 3.2.1.
Following the decision by Ministers that more research was needed, the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing (in consultation with the States and Territories) commissioned an extensive program of work into the costs and benefits of food safety programs. The outcome of this work is the basis of recommendations put to the Australia and New Zealand Food Regulation Ministerial Council (ANZFRMC) meeting in December 2003.
Food safety programs – current situation
On 12 December 2003 ANZFRMC agreed that food safety regulation should be based on the risk posed by certain types of businesses and that food safety programs will be required only for the types of businesses identified as high risk and where the cost to benefit ratio justifies this approach.
The food business sectors that Ministers agreed must have food safety programs, are:
- food service, in which potentially hazardous food is served to vulnerable populations (eg hospitals/nursing homes);
- producing, harvesting, processing and distributing raw oysters and other bivalves;
- catering operations serving food to the general population; and
- producers of manufactured and fermented meats.
FSANZ consulted nationally during 2004 as part of its standards development process. Amendments to the Food Standards Code for some of these proposals will be finalised by end 2005. Others will be finalised during 2006. See Fact Sheet – Standard 3.2.1 Food Safety Programs – Proposals to apply the standard – for developments.
Food businesses covered by this standard will not be required to comply with it until two years after the standard is adopted into the Food Standards Code. This allows for a flexible approach to implementation.
What are the key provisions in this standard?
Where Standard 3.2.1 Food Safety Programs does apply to a food business, the proprietor must examine the food handling operations to identify potential food safety hazards and prepare a written food safety program to control these hazards. This food safety program must stay on the premises and will be subject to a periodic audit. A hazard is a food safety problem that could potentially occur in your business.
A section further on in this fact sheet talks about an audit system
Standard 3.2.1 defines the six core elements of a food safety program. These are:
Hazard identification: the systematic identification of hazards that may be reasonably expected to occur in the food handling operations of the business;
Hazard control: the identification of the control point and controls for each hazard;
Monitoring: the systematic monitoring of the controls;
Corrective action: the steps to be taken when a hazard is not under appropriate control;
Review: regular reviews of the program to ensure that it is still effective; and
Record keeping: the records made and kept by a food business to show the action taken to ensure that the business complies with the food safety program.
Application to other food industry sectors
Requiring food safety programs for industry sectors other than those already agreed by the Ministerial Council would only occur where businesses were classified as high risk and where the benefit of introducing food safety programs outweighs the costs. The Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing is currently carrying out project work to assist in identifying all industry sectors into risk categories.
Classifying Food Businesses
The work being carried out by the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing to classify types of food businesses according to the risk of causing food borne illness is known as ‘risk profiling’. Further information on this project can be obtained from the website of the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing. The address is: http://www.health.gov.au Follow the prompts to food surveillance.
As mentioned earlier, any consideration of mandating food safety programs for other industry sectors would only occur where businesses were classified as high risk and where the benefit to cost ratio justifies the implementation of food safety programs.
Need more information?
Copies of the standards, the guides to these, and other supporting material can be found on the FSANZ website www.foodstandards.gov.au. The Department of Health and Ageing website also contains information on risk profiling and auditing.The address is www.health.gov.au.
In addition, FSANZ is proposing to develop a separate Interpretative Guide for Standard 3.2.1 Food Safety Programs. This information will be available from the FSANZ website and through State and Territory health departments.
Food businesses may also wish to seek advice directly from the Environmental Health Officers at their local council, or from their State or Territory health or health services department and Public Health Units. Contact details for State and Territory health departments and local councils are included in a separate fact sheet Food Safety Standards - Sources of information & advice
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(Updated September 2005)