Writing Your Own Food Defense Plan
Step three in developing a food defense plan
Facilities Currently Required to Participate
in Food Defense All vendors providing processed
foods to USDA federal feeding programs must be in compliance with the Food Defense System.
What do I Need to Write a Food Defense Plan?
Vulnerability assessment Map of facility Operational documents
HACCP plan SOP or GMP BQA or PQA plans
Who Will Be Responsible?
Designate a food defense coordinator to develop, implement and maintain the Food Defense Plan
Courtesy of Food Technology magazine, from "Defending the Food Supply," August 2005, Vol. 59, No.8. Food Technology is a publication of the Institute of Food Technologists, www.ift.org.
Write the plan
Describe each vulnerability specifically.
Decide if the vulnerability is practical to address.
Determine a countermeasure.
Write the plan (continued) Decide who will be responsible to
implement the countermeasure. Choose a reasonable timeline for
implementation. Initial and date plan when
implementation of countermeasure is completed.
Managing the plan
Review and revise the plan to accommodate new and newly elevated risks
Train the employees regarding their effort in:
Prevention
Detection
Response
Test the countermeasures after implementation
Make unannounced entrances at various checkpoints
Check locks in vulnerable areas
Perform a mock recall
Test inventory procedures
Managing the plan (continued)
Managing the plan (continued)
Re-evaluate the plan annually or as products, processes or facilities change.
Copies of the plan should be kept on-site and off-site.