Food hygiene at work: from screening to an action plan
Anyone preparing, distributing or serving food on the shop floor must take food hygiene seriously. This can be done by drawing up and implementing an auto-control system in your organisation. Find out how to prevent risks and comply with all legal requirements – from HACCP to hand hygiene – with IDEWE’s support.
Why is food hygiene important?
Whether you work in a school kitchen, healthcare facility or company canteen, anyone working with food must handle foodstuffs in a safe, hygienic manner. Doing so protects the health of employees, customers and visitors alike and prevents food-borne infections.
IDEWE’s experts support employers in identifying and managing food risks and help you to meet all legal obligations when it comes to food safety.
How do you ensure food safety?
As a company in the food industry (B2B), you are legally obliged to have an auto-control system (ACS) that is tailored to your organisation. Such a system includes good hygiene practices and is based on the HACCP principles to guarantee food safety.
If your company supplies consumers directly (B2C), you can use the auto-control guide published by the Belgian Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain (FASFC).
If you are still in any doubt, our experts will be happy to work together with you to see which situation applies. Feel free to contact them.
What is HACCP and what are the rules?
HACCP stands for Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points. It is a control system that allows you to identify and manage food contamination risks. You map out all the steps in the production process, identify the critical control points (CCPs) and draw up measures to prevent these risks.
The seven HACCP principles are as follows:
- Identify potential hazards
- Identify the critical control points (CCPs)
- Establish critical limits
- Establish and implement effective monitoring procedures for the critical control points
- Establish corrective actions
- Establish verification procedures
- Draw up documentation and records
Only companies active in the food industry have to follow the seven HACCP principles. Companies supplying directly to consumers do not need to follow these steps.
Who monitors food safety?
The Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain (FASFC) monitors food safety in Belgium. FASFC inspectors carry out regular inspections of your kitchen to check you are complying with food hygiene rules.
If it is determined that you are not in compliance with the rules, you risk a fine or being shut down (temporarily). If you want to avoid such fines, allow yourself to be guided by IDEWE’s experts or read more on the FASFC's website.
How IDEWE supports your organisation
Our HACCP experts have years of experience in the field of food hygiene. They offer a pathway that suits your specific needs and strictly adhere to professional secrecy. You will always be up to date with the latest legislation, too, as our HACCP employees are constantly developing their knowledge.
- Our HACCP experts will visit you for:
- A screening – which good hygiene practices (GHP) do you already use, and which aren’t in place yet?
- An audit – is the auto-control system present and operating correctly?
- Microbiological checks – do you clean and disinfect the kitchen efficiently and do your employees apply hand hygiene practices correctly?
- Temperature measurements
- You will work with our HACCP expert to draw up an action plan. This will include:
- Managing critical control points
- Developing and improving work instructions and/or procedures
- Participation in HACCP meetings
- Monitoring the food safety culture
- You and your employees will stay up to date with the latest HACCP rules through our training courses as well as our posters, brochures and stickers.
“The FASFC has strict legislation on food safety. I’m not fully up to date with the legislation, so IDEWE’s help has been more than welcome. In the past few years, we’ve made our way through a successful process together. And we’ve put the finishing touches to that process by obtaining a Smiley, the certificate for food safety and the auto-control system.”
What can you do yourself?
You can already take quite a few actions to increase food safety in your organisation:
- Establish clear procedures for receiving, storing and preparing food.
- Provide training for and raise awareness among your employees.
- Monitor cooling and cooking temperatures.
- Pay attention to hand hygiene.
Start the 'Good food hygiene in the kitchen' pathway
If you want to protect consumers and your organisation, update your food safety plan. The first step is to get in touch.
Got a question about food safety in your organisation?
Our experts will be happy to help you. Contact our specialists through your regional IDEWE office or by e-mail
Why choose IDEWE?
- Expertise and guidance – We offer practical support and recommendations to ensure good food hygiene at your organisation and ensure you comply with regulatory requirements in full.
- Clear roadmap – Our 'Good food hygiene in the kitchen' pathway allows you to successfully integrate hygiene and safety measures into your company.
- Training courses – We offer tailored training courses to raise employees’ awareness of food safety and teach them how to manage the risks.