Food safety professionals are all familiar with HACCP (Hazard Analysis & Critical Control Point), but what about TACCP (Threat Assessment Critical Control Point)?
“It’s important to understand that there are criminals out there and real threats to our business”, says Lynn Patterson of LP Associates, who specialises in food-safety training. “There are different types of people involved in food threats: the opportunistic, the extremist, the extortionist and the professional criminal, as food is a big opportunity for them.
“TACCP is a process that is very similar to HACCP. It has a familiar methodology but it involves looking at threats as opposed to hazards.”
“TACCP would certainly help you show that you understand your supply chain and the threats to your business,” says Lynn. “HACCP mainly involves quality, technical and production engineering, whereas TACCP brings in human resources, security and purchasing because it looks at the supply chain, the site and the production facility.”
The supply chain in the food industry is complex so there is plenty of opportunity for food fraud. The horsemeat adulteration scandal in 2013 brought this type of crime to the attention of not only food processors and the retail industry, but also the public.
“Authorities are trying to tackle food crime and they want the industry to self-regulate”, says Lynn. “This is a great opportunity for us to take on this new methodology and actually look at our supply chain and process.”
Products known to be prone to threats such as mislabelling, include olive oil, basmati rice and manuka honey, which is sold at a high price for its health benefits. Fraud in the fish industry is also common, as was shown in a 2013 Oceana study, which reported that a third of the fish tested in retail outlets in the United States was mislabelled.
Food security is not completely new to companies. Those with the British Retail Consortium Global Standard for Food Safety already have detailed knowledge of their supply base. The newest version of this standard was released at the start of January. It focuses on encouraging companies to put systems in place to reduce their exposure to fraud. It also seeks to foster greater transparency and traceability in the supply chain.
She adds that the Global Food Safety Initiative, an industry-driven global collaborative platform to advance food safety, talks about an umbrella of food safety. It has three pillars: HACCP, TACCP and VACCP, which is vulnerability assessment.
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