Can anyone share a copy of their Glass, Brittle Plastics and ceramics register or at least tell me what all needs to be on it?
Thanks
PNP Man
Hi PNP MAN. The answer to that question might vary depending on whether you are asking what needs to be included in your register to comply with a particular audit scheme. Typically, your register should include any glass, plastic, or ceramics located within your open storage/production area(s). These items should be assessed according to the risk of the hazard they present, and if they can be removed or replaced with a food safe alternative - they should be. What you are then left with are - what should be a limited number of - essential items and they should be protected against breakage or contamination. Your register should now include all of the items that were considered to be essential to the operation of your facility. Based on further assessment, you should assign an appropriate frequency for an audit. Some high risk areas might require daily, or shift-by-shift, audits while low risk areas might only need to be audited monthly.
Controlling your glass, plastic, and ceramic is important to your program.
Eliminating non-essential items is vital to food safety.
Auditing against your register is a great way to verify the effectiveness of your overall glass and plastic program (i.e. breakage procedures, reporting, maintenance, etc.).
I have a question for you. Hypothetically, let's say that you have an extremely detailed register that lists every bulb, switch, window, etc. in your entire facility. The time comes when you need to perform a monthly audit so you hit the floor with your trusty clipboard and pen. During your audit, you notice that two plastic covers on a control panel are missing, and the paper towel dispenser located close to your production line looks like someone hit it with a baseball bat. Do you start holding product, and if so, how much?
Regardless of what you include or don't include on your register, if the fundamental control of glass and plastic is not effective - the register+audit can become a dangerous excercise in futility.
With all that said, are you aiming for compliance to a particular auditing scheme (BRC, SQF, etc.)?
-Chris
