Food Safety Plans: Risk-Based Preventive Controls

In Burdock Group’s February newsletter, we discussed key requirements of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), such as Food Safety Plans (FSPs) and role of a Preventive Controls Qualified Individual (PCQI). The FSP includes a hazard analysis, which assesses “known or reasonably foreseeable hazards” during the manufacturing, processing, packing and holding of food products, and determines the need for risk-based preventive controls (PCs) to minimize or eliminate a food safety hazard or reduce a food hazard to an acceptable level (21 CFR 117.3). This month, we discuss the various types of PCs (e.g., process, food allergen, sanitation, supply-chain, and others) that may be included in a FSP to control hazards.