17. Process control
Process controls
Once the risk assessment is complete, process controls unique to the process and product must be identified, which are compliant with customer requirements.
Process controls
Process controls for the materials and product that you’re handling, should have been determined using the process control risk assessment.
Certification standards don’t tend to go into this in a great amount of detail, because these controls can be so varied. However, application of the right controls is critical to safety, legality, authenticity and quality of the product.
For this reason, customer standards go into a bit more detail, because it’s essential that businesses that produce their own brand products – get it right.
The standards
This article is written to meet the following sections of the Standards:
| BRCGS Food Safety Issue 9 | 5.9.4 Post-slaughter time and temperature 5.8,2, 5.8.3, 5.8.4 Processing of pet food and animal feed |
| BRCGS Packaging Issue 6 | No specific clauses |
| BRCGS Agents & Brokers Issue 3 | No specific clauses |
| BRCGS Storage & Distribution Issue 4 | No specific clauses |
| FSSC22000 Version 5.1 | No specific clauses |
| IFS Food Version 7 | No specific clauses |
| SQF Edition 9 | No specific clauses |
| Additional standards | Sainsbury’s, M&S, AIB |
The requirements
Slaughter
Process controls, including time and temperature requirements for post-slaughter processes must be defined for all edible parts of the carcass.
Pet food and animal feed
Process controls must be defined for the manufacture of pet food and animal feed, this must include:
- Cross contamination of materials, which may be harmful to unintended recipients.
- Control of medicated ingredients, materials and product.
BRCGS Food Safety Issue 9
There were no changes in Issue 9 that impacted the requirements in this article.
Customer requirements
Customer standards include detail specific process controls for some processes and products, these include:
- Seal integrity and gas levels in packaging.
- Cooking in hermetically sealed bags.
- Pre-coding prior to chilling or freezing.
- Water quality for cooling systems.
- Thermal processing.
If you use any of the above processing techniques, please refer to your customer codes of practice for their requirements for process controls.
Process control edocs
Pack 17: Process control
Our edocs pack gives you a really robust structure to determine what your process controls should be and implement a system which will ensure that non-conforming product doesn’t get sent to the customer.
When you download our pack, you’re one step closer to getting your product and process under control. You’ll be applying the quality and simplicity to your process control using the unique expertise you can expect from Techni-K.
Process control elearning
Mini training
We have a selection of mini eLearning courses designed to teach how to control authenticity claims, control printed packaging and understand how to identify process controls, document process instructions, secure settings and provide records for training.
Our elearning is simple and straightforward to use, it includes a lesson guide and can be stopped and started when you have time available to complete it.
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