Post Market Surveillance in a HACCP Environment
John E. Kvenberg, Food and Drug Administration, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Office of Field Programs, Washington, DC 20204
The Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) system is a preventive system for assuring the safe production of food products. HACCP principles have long been in place in the FDA regulated low-acid canned food (LACF) industry. Currently, within the USA, the FDA has mandated HACCP for seafood processing and is proposing mandating HACCP for facilities producing fruit and vegetable juices. FDA has incorporated HACCP into its Food Code, a document that gives guidance to and serves as model legislation for state and territorial agencies that license and inspect food service establishments, retail food stores, and food vending operations in the United States. In addition to the regulations, the agency is conducting pilot HACCP programs with volunteer food companies. The pilot program is intended to provide information that food science professionals can use in determining whether HACCP should be expanded beyond seafood as a food safety regulatory program. FDA advocates HACCP and agrees that it is the best food control system of choice.