Food Safety & HACCP Principles Flashcards

Which of the following best describes a Critical Control Point (CCP) in a HACCP plan?

Answer: Any step where a food safety hazard can be prevented, eliminated, or reduced to acceptable levels

A CCP is a step at which control can be applied to prevent, eliminate, or reduce a food safety hazard to an acceptable level.

A HACCP plan is built on several prerequisite programs. Which of the following is NOT typically considered a prerequisite program?

Answer: Critical limit monitoring log

Critical limit monitoring logs are part of the HACCP plan itself, not a prerequisite program; prerequisite programs are foundational controls like sanitation, pest control, and supplier verification.

During a hazard analysis, a food safety team determines that Listeria monocytogenes is a hazard 'reasonably likely to occur' in a ready-to-eat deli meat facility. What should be the team's next step?

Answer: Identify or establish a CCP to control the Listeria hazard

When a hazard is determined to be reasonably likely to occur, the HACCP team must identify a CCP or other control measure to address it.

The internal cooking temperature for poultry in the United States is set at 165°F (74°C). In HACCP terms, this temperature represents a:

Answer: Critical limit

A critical limit is the maximum or minimum value to which a biological, chemical, or physical parameter must be controlled at a CCP to prevent food safety hazards.

Which HACCP principle involves establishing procedures to verify that the HACCP system is working effectively?

Answer: Principle 6 — Establish verification procedures

Principle 6 requires establishing verification activities such as audits, calibration, and microbial testing to confirm the HACCP system is functioning as intended.

A food handler notices that the internal temperature of a roast beef did not reach the required 145°F (63°C) during cooking. According to HACCP corrective action procedures, what should happen first?

Answer: Continue cooking the product until the critical limit is met, then document the deviation

Corrective action requires that the product be held and evaluated, and if possible, the process deviation corrected (e.g., continuing to cook) before the product is released.

In the HACCP decision tree, if a control measure exists at a step for a significant hazard but the step is NOT designed to eliminate or reduce the hazard to acceptable levels, how is that step classified?

Answer: It is not a CCP and the hazard must be addressed at a subsequent step or through a prerequisite program

If a step has a control measure but is not specifically designed to control the hazard to acceptable levels, it is not a CCP; the hazard must be controlled elsewhere.