10 replies to this topic

[EcoStarHealth]

Hi everybody. I have just started a new company that repackages hemp seed foods. I just found about the need for an HACCP and have a request of anybody out there who could and would be willing to help.

 

Can anyone share me a complete guide/manual or reference on HACCP MANUAL Document where identified system is in place?

 

Thank you, JP

Edited by Charles.C, 12 July 2013 - 12:14 AM.
split to new topic

[imadoughguy]

JP,

Google HACCP and you will see lots of examples. I like the ones from Educational institutions (usually .org) because they are free and you can download them for reference.

You will need to write your own HACCP plan. There are lots of pre-loaded plans and templates out there to help. Expect to spend $500 to $1000.

You can pay someone (a consultant) to come in and help you and your team develop and write your HACCP plan, expect to spend $4000-$6000 (or more) depending on the complexity of your operation, how many production lines you have, how many steps there are in your process, how much of a hazard your product presents etc...

Hope this helps, feel free to contact me for more general information, I am not a consultant, however I have been in the business for over 35 years in General Management and Quality Assurance and everything in between. :-)

Phil

[QAD_Rebisco]

JP,

Google HACCP and you will see lots of examples. I like the ones from Educational institutions (usually .org) because they are free and you can download them for reference.

You will need to write your own HACCP plan. There are lots of pre-loaded plans and templates out there to help. Expect to spend $500 to $1000.

You can pay someone (a consultant) to come in and help you and your team develop and write your HACCP plan, expect to spend $4000-$6000 (or more) depending on the complexity of your operation, how many production lines you have, how many steps there are in your process, how much of a hazard your product presents etc...

Hope this helps, feel free to contact me for more general information, I am not a consultant, however I have been in the business for over 35 years in General Management and Quality Assurance and everything in between. :-)

Phil

 HEllo Phil,

 

 free site for HACCP MAnual reference.

[cazyncymru]

You could get a copy of CCFRA's 4th Edition of HACCP

Cost about £75 but is a good reference document

 

Cazx

[dshapos]

There are lots of materials out there.  If you are starting the company and looking towards GFSI certification, I would highly recommend the following:

1)  The best books I have found on HACCP are from Carol Mortimore and Sara Wallace.  They have one out called Food Safety for the 21st Century, and a new one that came our this year (don't recall the title)

2)  Someone new to HACCP can get lost in the weeds, so to speak, with too many CCP's and a very complex and long HACCP flow diagram, which makes the hazard analysis rather cumbersome.  When you start your HACCP, look towards the modular flow chart, where you separate different processes into their own modules (eg., Incoming Ingredients (receiving & storage) Module 1;  Mixing (weighing, pouring, sifting, etc), Module 2; Processing (cooking, etc) Module 3...... Storage of finished products & distribution as the last modules).

3)  Hire a consultant if you are serious about GFSI and have not done HACCP before. (try GCP consulting out of Toronto).

[esquef]

Here's a HACCP plan template from AIB that is a pretty good place to start building your plan:

 

https://www.aibonlin.../haccpDocs.html

[EcoStarHealth]

Thank you everyone. It is very kind of you, and very much appreciated, to have taken the time to provide these inputs. I have a very simple operations and a one-man show thus far, so I'll take the long route and do this myself. I shiver at the thought but we do what we have to do. Again, thanks!

 

Jean-Pierre

[Charles.C]

Dear EcostarHealth,

 

In yr OP, you specified a HACCP manual oriented to your product, hemp. This limited the scope rather drastically.

 

If you are interested in detailed, ready-to-use, generic food haccp manuals inc. prequisite procedures, forms etc,  these do exist and are downloadable on this forum. If you are still watching this thread, pls inform.

 

Rgds / Charles.C

[Tony-C]

Hi everybody. I have just started a new company that repackages hemp seed foods. I just found about the need for an HACCP and have a request of anybody out there who could and would be willing to help.

 

Can anyone share me a complete guide/manual or reference on HACCP MANUAL Document where identified system is in place?

 

Thank you, JP

 

Hi JP,

 

Is this contract packing? and do you have knowledge of hemp seed foods and the hazards associated with them?

 

Regards,

 

Tony

[EcoStarHealth]

Hi Tony.  I'm not sure what you mean by "contract packing". I buy these products in bulk and then repackage them. I have a fairly in-depth knowledge of hemp seed foods. As far as I know, there are no hazards associated with them. There are no known allergens to hemp seed foods and, while many people confuse hemp seed foods with marijuana (I find tons of references to "hemp oil" when they are really referencing "marijuana oil"). BTW, hemp seed oil has a healthier profile than olive oil. The two plants are very different in look, differ in farming methods (if grown together, they will cross-pollinate and render both useless for their intended purpose), etc. Hemp is the most Earth-conscious plant (even more than the much-touted bamboo), needs to pesticides, insecticides, herbicides to grow. It has been used for food, clothing, etc., since (as far as we know) 10,000 BC. It is still used in most of the rest of the world. In fact, today, BMW, Audi and Mercedes-Benz have 10% hemp fiber in the car (mostly in panels). The story of hemp in the US is quite interesting and has to do with the Mellon Bank, DuPont and the predecessor to the DEA. 

 

Having said all that it is important to select the right provider of hemp seed foods. Like everything else, producers can cut corners and offer a product that is adulterated (just like with olive oil producers which are known to adulterate their product with other vegetable oils that are less expensive), or that is produced in less than optimum conditions (e.g., cold processing of the hemp seeds to produce hemp seed oil at temperatures lower than 50C in an oxygen-free environment; oxygen-free environment and packaging to prevent early oxidation of the oil; facility dedicated to hemp seeds to prevent cross-contamination with known allergens such as peanuts; etc.).

 

Happy to answer any questions/concerns you may have. You may also learn more on my website. Over the next few days, I will be putting up a tab titled "Hemp College" (or maybe "Hemp University", not sure yet) which will contain a variety of articles (mostly medical/scientific) on the benefits of hemp seeds as food, as well as history of hemp. BTW, in the US, a farmer had to grow hemp or could go to jail (it was the law); hemp could be used to pay taxes; the drafts of the Declaration of Independence, most of the books (including the Bible) and currency were written/printed on hemp paper (much friendlier product to the environment than paper produced from pulp wood); Washington and Jefferson were hemp farmers and Ben Franklin owned and operated a hemp mill. While regulations on hemp made it prohibitive to grow, along with cheaper competition from DuPont fabrics, in 1942 the US government spent $10MM to encourage farmers to grow hemp as part of the war effort. The government even made a movie (link on my website or you can search for it on YouTube - "Hemp for Victory") about it.

 

Today, states are liberalizing the culture of hemp (along with marijuana) which runs afoul of federal laws. However, the culture is not illegal as much as it controlled. That is, one can apply to the DEA for a permit to grow hemp. It requires 8 ft. fences; locked gates; lighting of the entire acreage at night; and 24/7 guards. Hawaii was the last entity to apply for a permit in 1999. It was granted but the experiment was ended some 6 months later. It is legal to import and consume hemp products, include hemp seed foods.

[Charles.C]

Dear EcoStar Health,

 

Thks for the background material.

 

I have a fairly in-depth knowledge of hemp seed foods. As far as I know, there are no hazards associated with them.

 

 

I presume by “them” you meant your hemp seed foods. Otherwise, (and my own knowledge is solely from the net so apologies in advance if we are talking about different items), the available data seems somewhat contrary to this claim.

 

Here is  Wikipedia intro –

 

Hemp is a commonly used term for varieties of the Cannabis plant and its products, which include fiber, oil, and seed. In many countries regulatory limits for concentrations of psychoactive drug compounds (THC) in hemp encourage the use of strains of the plant which are bred for low tetrahydrocannabinol  (THC) content or otherwise have the THC removed. Hemp is refined into products like hemp seed foods, hemp oil, wax, resin, rope, cloth, pulp, and fue

 

 

 I also noticed this comment from another “hemp seed food” supplier

 

Will I fail a urinalysis test if I eat hemp seed foods?

No. It has been documented in the Journal of Analytical Toxicology, ISSN 0146-4760, Volume 32, Number 6, July/August, pp.428-432 that eating hemp food products under 10ppm THC will not cause a false positive drug test. All of our hemp food products contain under 10ppm THC.

 

Is your hemp genetically modified to bring down the THC?

 

No. The very low THC variety hemp seeds that we use has been selectively bred, not genetically modified. All of our hemp seeds are original source and contain no Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs).

 

http://www.rawganique.com/Food.htm

 

I guess these are features  you were considering in  “Having said all that it is important to select the right provider of hemp seed foods.”

 

The evaluation of such potential hazards, and their control (if required) are precisely what HACCP  is all about.

 

Rgds / Charles.C