Professor Chris Elliott, PhD, FRSC, FRSB, MRIA, OBE
Chris has studied and researched food safety and fraud for over 30 years. He has published more than 500 peer review articles relating to the detection and control of agriculture, food and environmental related contaminants. Protecting the integrity of the food supply chain from fraud is a key research topic and Chris led the independent review of Britain’s food system following the 2013 horsemeat scandal. He is a co-founder of the UK Food Industry Intelligence Network and has served as a non executive director since it’s inception in 2015. He acts as a scientific advisor for many food companies, non-governmental and governmental agencies in the areas of food safety, food fraud and food systems resilience.
Chris has kindly reviewed and assessed the product defence aspects from the food safety and GMP courses, which were:
- Site access; access to the site.
- External areas; bulk deliveries – protecting and securing materials, accepting, checking and recording deliveries – seals, securing silo access points – silo pipe capping, how to gain access to secure site entrances.
- Staff facilities; authentic product, whistleblowing.
- Material receipt and handling; authenticity.
- Processing; authenticity.
- Storage and dispatch; dispatching the load, security.
Nic Sharman MSc, FIFST, RFoodSM, RPFAM
Nic Sharman is a pragmatic professional with a MSc in Food Safety Management and nearly 30 years’ experience in the food industry, specialising in food safety and integrity technical compliance. She is an experienced and enthusiastic Factory Standards Manager with a demonstrated history of working in food manufacturing, catering and retail sectors. She has global experience as a food safety and integrity auditor with knowledge across all food and beverage categories. During her time at M&S, Nic was responsible for developing the food safety and integrity manufacturing standards for all M&S suppliers. She also developed and implemented the corresponding audits that were carried out by an independent audit company.
Based on her knowledge and expertise, we asked Nic to assess our Food safety and GMP eLearning course for Ready to eat products specifically. We asked her to review the content of this course, because as well as the topics that sit in all of our courses as a baseline, such as traceability, integrity and contamination control etc. this course is one of our most complex – as it includes high risk principles and various CCP controls in its processing.
Based on what you know of us as a business, how would you describe Techni-K?
Chris says:
I have been familiar with the work of Techni-K for around 8 years. They have striven to be the best in market to deliver valuable training and learning tools for UK food businesses across a wide variety of areas that are needed by the industry. Techni-K is a highly professional company and all the material that I have read has been of the highest possible quality and indeed of great support to their customer base.
Nic says:
Techni-k are a business you can trust who provide valuable, current information to support food business operators meet audit requirements. Their knowledge in food safety and integrity is industry leading which is demonstrated in the learning material they produce which is high quality and industry specific.
Are there any comments you would like to make about the subject matter training, materials and Techni-K?
Nic says:
The learning materials provided are outstanding. It is very engaging, and I think the variety of interactive activities for the learner is well thought through. I like the way you have used topics to weave in other food safety messages for example putting in trays top down and taking out bottom up because of foreign bodies.
How well do you think the course explains the subject?
Chris says:
Having reviewed all the course material in depth I have found it to be a well organised, step guide to producing food safely in an industrial environment. The material goes into quite a lot of detail but it appears to have been written for new entrants to the food industry who have not had previous training. The structure is very good in that it walks the trainee from entering the manufacturing, right though all steps in terms of food production to the final packaging. Th general layout and graphic design used are very helpful in terms of keeping the interest of the reader.
Nic says:
The course explains the subject very well, using an engaging, visual and audible learning approach to keep the learner engaged. Food safety and GMP courses cover a wide variety of complex topics. Throughout this course the topics are broken down into smaller manageable sections. The learner is taught the definitions used in the food industry, best practices and more importantly, why we need to have certain practices in place.
Is the level of learning relevant to the specified roles?
Chris says:
Yes. The course is designed for new entrants to the food manufacturing industry. The essentials are all covered very well in an understandable manner.
Nic says:
This course is suitable for the level of learner. It gives people just starting in a business a good overview of how a food business operates from beginning to end.
What are your thoughts on the assessment questions?
Chris says:
The questions included in the assessment are substantial in terms of numbers and also the breadth of the training course. To be able to answer these correctly the trainees will have to have read/viewed all course material and understood it.
Nic says:
There are a variety of excellent assessment tools used throughout the course to confirm the learner has a good understanding of the topic. Each of the assessments are engaging and interactive. At the end of the course there is a multiple choice 25-question test with a selection of questions covering all the topics in the course.
What do you think of the quality of the training materials (interactive videos and lesson guides)?
Chris says:
The quality is of a high standard. Each step of the process of GMP is clearly laid out in terms of what is essential to know and understand.
Nic says:
The training materials are excellent, high quality and clearly presented. The lesson guide is a good reference point to go back to, and the interactive video is superb. The characters bring the journey through the factory to life. The graphics, images and learner interaction is outstanding.
How does this course compare to other similar courses that you’re aware of?
Chris says:
While I am not an expert in all courses offered on the marketplace, the material on offer from Techni-K is of a very high quality and I’m not aware of anything that is superior. To me it is a ‘one stop shop’ for all new employees should be expected to know, understand and implement in their working routines.
Nic says:
I am not aware of any other course that could be compared to this course that is on the market. Its unique approach provides engaging and interactive learning material that is leading standards and inclusive for all learners including EAL (English as an additional language).
Are there any aspects of the course that you would see as best practice?
Chris says:
Much of what is included is under the heading of ‘essential knowledge’ and will be covered in all bona fide training courses on GMP and food safety. The step by step guide from entering the facility right through all processes is a very good way to lay out the training to participants.
Nic says:
The course allows the learner to understand how to complete a task and why it is required. The language used, also makes the learner think about how they can impact the business and contribute to its success.
How does the course add value to the industry?
Chris says:
In my opinion, the course is an excellent one for those working in a food manufacturing facility who must understand the importance of why so many rules are procedures are in place. Not to comply with these is clearly spelt out.
Nic says:
If every new starter received a comprehensive induction and learning program like this, the knowledge in the food industry would improve and potentially we could see a decrease in food safety issues.
Are there any aspects in the course that are not pitched at the right level?
Chris says:
No. The right level of information is included.
Nic says:
The course is pitched at the right level for someone working in the factory.
Are there any aspects of the course that are confusing or misleading?
Chris says:
No, I didn’t find any areas that I thought were misleading or confused.
Nic says:
No. The course is very clear, accurate and easy to understand.
What would you improve and is there anything that’s missing?
Chris says:
There are quite a few mentions of the ‘food safety team’. This is absolutely correct but perhaps each staff member should think of themselves as an important member of the team and flag up any problems they see, reinforce the importance of complying with the rules to workmates. This is all part of a food safety culture, everyone is part of the team! There is no ‘further reading’ suggested. Some useful weblinks could be provided to sites which have useful information about food safety (FSA for example).
Techni-K says:
We totally appreciate what Chris is saying, as food safety is most definitely a team approach. Currently the term food safety team refers to those that specifically develop the food safety plan (HACCP). However, expanding this to explain that everyone is part of the food safety team would add value, and we will include this in the update for 2024.
Nic says:
- As the course I reviewed is aimed at ready to eat high risk factories, I would introduce Listeria monocytogenes earlier in the course when microbiology is first introduced and expand later in the high risk section. I would also include that this pathogen can grow a temperature below 4°C.
- When labelling stacks of trays, we would typically do this top and bottom so when the first tray is used the traceability on the stack of trays is not lost.
- Include no jewels on arms of glasses, in the personal hygiene section.
- Include non-perfumed soap to be used in step 2, in the handwashing process.
- Update the allergens in the USA to include sesame, within unit 5: Allergens around the world.
- The image used for entering high risk has a bench without a solid barrier. Have a solid barrier on the high risk side of the image so there is no chance of contamination from the floor in low risk.
- In unit 7 – when leaving low risk, the coats hung up were white with red collars – but they should only be white if they have just left low risk.
- I would include how to segregate similar products in the storage areas and throughout the factory process, to ensure the correct raw material is used to maintain any product claims.
Techni-K says:
Nic has raised some great points that will definitely improve the courses, as a whole and specifically for the ready-to-eat course, and those with high-risk facilities – we’ll be implementing all of these points when we update the courses ready for launch early 2024.
What really stands out from Nic’s feedback, is the level of detail that she has provided. This is evidenced when Nic’s comments mention jewels in the arms of glasses within the personal hygiene section. This means, we can build on the level of detail we provide and include the type of glasses worn in this section- so that they don’t have jewels on the arms.
All of the images in the courses are drawn by us, so that we can ensure that they reflect what you’d really see inside a food facility. This means, that we can take Nic’s feedback on board and ensure that small details are accurate (the bench in high-risk not being a solid barrier at the bottom).
