Protecting the product from foreign body hazards

Contents

• The standards
• The requirements
• BRCGS Food Safety Issue 9

The standards

This article is written to meet the following sections of the Standards:

The requirements

Staples, paper clips and similar metallic items

Metal staples or other similar packaging closures used to close the product, which could become a foreign-body should be avoided.

Where these items can’t be avoided, such packaging closures must be adequately controlled to ensure that they don’t contaminate product.

Material packaging

A procedure must be in place for debagging and deboxing, to prevent physical contamination of materials by the material’s packaging.

Prior to packaged materials being taken into open product areas, the packaging should be visually checked for contamination, and cleaned if necessary.

Portable handheld items

In open product areas:

• Staples, paper clips, drawing pins or tacks are not allowed.
• Notices must be kept in good condition.
• Pens must be designed without small parts, and where detectors are in place; they must be metal detectable.

A risk assessment must be completed to identify which items are a risk to product and the controls required.

Overhead contamination

Where there any open product areas on site, which have overheads or ceilings and that are not cleaned sufficiently to prevent the debris build up, the product must be covered at all times (for example using line covers).