Food Safety Plans
A food safety plan is written for a
specific operation and describes the policies, standard operating procedures,
and recordkeeping methods the operation uses to reduce the risk of foodborne
illness.
A food safety plan includes examples of
the operation’s recordkeeping forms. The plan also addresses critical areas
that predispose food to contamination, and lists action steps to prevent or
reduce potential contamination. A good plan guides workers and indicates to
auditors what the farm does to prevent contamination, and what would be done in
case of an outbreak. Ideally, the person in charge of food safety reviews the
plan annually, and updates it with improvements and modifications — similar to
how farmers review production, pest management, and marketing plans and updates
them to incorporate improved methods and new information.
Every farm can benefit from a written
food safety plan. Farms that intend to go through a third-party food safety
audit must have a written plan or they will not pass the audit. The resources below
provide more information about what to include in a plan, examples of food
safety plans, and templates for writing a plan.