HACCP in combination with the rules of good hygiene seems to offer a rational, preventive and functional approach to food safety, while the implementation of a quality assurance system according to the internationally recognized standard of ISO 9000 greatly increases its effectiveness. food control.

In recent years, many developments have taken place regarding food safety and its management through the dedicated HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points) system, as they are currently being developed internationally. Similar developments have taken place with the hygiene measures / requirements that support HACCP and the practices that have been developed to meet the HACCP “hygiene” requirements / requirements for the food industry.

Food safety covers the entire “production chain” from primary production to final use or consumption (ie from the field or farm, industrial food processing to the disposal of the final product for consumption). Numerous hazards can be introduced into food all the way through the production chain, as shown in Figure 1, causing them to become contaminated. Risks may arise from primary production (pesticides, pesticides, veterinary drugs, antibiotics, fertilizers, pathogenic microorganisms, naturally occurring toxins, etc.) or may be introduced during food processing (chemical additives, lubricants, foreign bodies, chemicals from packaging materials, contamination of pathogenic microorganisms, etc.). Of course, food processing, among other things, is done with the aim of sanitizing food by removing or destroying the various hazards (destruction of pathogenic microorganisms or restriction of their action, removal of foreign bodies, etc.).

Food safety, therefore, must be considered at every stage of the food chain (as it is called). But as it has become clear that the complete elimination of food hazards is practically impossible – no one can claim to produce zero-risk products – the realistic goal of food producers and food safety systems is to reduce, as far as possible, the hazard (ie the likelihood of occurrence) of food hazards. For this purpose, the risk analysis of the risks (microbiological, chemical and physical) is required today, which must be done by quantifying them (Quantitative Risk Assessment – QRA).