Safety Team vs. HACCP Team

Hello Guys!

I have just reviewed my Hazard and Risk Management gap analysis for BRC with the management and have them commit to provide list of employees who will be on the HACCP Team. Their idea is to have the same staff as with the Safety Team. Now I am a bit confused.

- Do we need to have separate teams-one for safety team and the other for HACCP?

- Since they said the safety team and HACCP team will have the same staff, our HR Manager is also a Safety Officer. His educational background is Law, no experience with quality or product safety, is he qualified to become a HACCP Team Leader/Coordinator if he is trained?

- The HR Manager just asked me this question. "What is the safety team requirement with respect to BRC and how big is the team?" :helpplease:

Thank you guys for your usual support. 

Regards,

Lorena

Hi, Lorenab;

The teams can be the same as long as individuals meet the section requirements.  It's always a good practice to have multi-disciplinary positions within a team, however they should ("shall" according to BRC) have a solid understanding of process and the hazards. These individuals don't necessarily have to be certified to HACCP, just prove some competence.

From clause 2.1.1

Dear Lorenab,

it might relate to yr product/process, eg very low risk, vice-versa.

The typical composition/ requirements of a HACCP team is fairly well-defined in various places and has been discussed on this forum.

What is the definition / scope of a "Safety" Team ? i suspect another American specialty.

My offhand answer to yr OP question is No unless the candidate is considered to be likely to be remarkably adept at learning FS/HACCP in a, presumably, restricted timescale.

Rgds / Charles.C

Charles a Safety Team, whether it's an American specialty or not, is typically a team of employees that bring up safety hazards and attempt to mitigate them just as a food safety team would with food safety hazards.

At first I was thinking he was talking about food safety team... but it was pretty clear by the end that that wasn't the case.

Anyhow my suggestion is that someone with no real knowledge of HACCP shouldn't be the team leader. 

Thank you guys! in your case, do you have 2 teams?

Most of the plants I have been in, had safety committees and HACCP teams.  Safety committees are usually a combination of management and staff, while HACCP is usually been more management,  in my experience.    

We have a Safety Committee, a food safety team, and a HACCP team.  Most of the members form the food safety team are the same as the HACCP team.  I'm the leader of the food safety team and the HACCP team but not the safety committee.

We are pretty much starting in this program. Would you recommend getting online HACCP Training? Does anyone know of HACCP Training tailored for Food Packaging?

IFSQN has some courses you can check the store.  Also AIB may have an online food packaging HACCP course.

Thank you guys! in your case, do you have 2 teams?

Just one team. We're a small company, so obviously many "hats" are worn by everyone, however that being said we all have intimate knowledge of the processes. Larger companies tend to be compartmentalized  and the saying "one hand doesn't know what the other is doing" aptly  applies. 

You may want to contact FSAP for information as they are publishing HACCP models for the packaging industry. AIB as mentioned is a good resource for training in this sector.

LoreanaB,

   The same people on the safety committee can be the same people you have on your HACCP team. However you must define them separate. Keep the minutes separate. Keep the walkthrough separate. Keep the CAPA (Corrective Action Preventative Action) separate. The HACCP Coordinator should be trained by an accredited agency and should run the HACCP Team meeting not the EHS manager unless its the same person. The HACCP Coordinator can train the team on HACCP to comply with "The team members shall have specific knowledge of HACCP and relevant knowledge of product, process and associated hazards"

This link can get you headed in the right direction:

http://www.fda.gov/F.../ucm2006801.htm

Just one team. We're a small company, so obviously many "hats" are worn by everyone, however that being said we all have intimate knowledge of the processes. Larger companies tend to be compartmentalized  and the saying "one hand doesn't know what the other is doing" aptly  applies. 

 

You may want to contact FSAP for information as they are publishing HACCP models for the packaging industry. AIB as mentioned is a good resource for training in this sector.

Thank you Slab,

Their site is undergoing update, I can't wait to have their website working again.

LoreanaB,

  

   The same people on the safety committee can be the same people you have on your HACCP team. However you must define them separate. Keep the minutes separate. Keep the walkthrough separate. Keep the CAPA (Corrective Action Preventative Action) separate. The HACCP Coordinator should be trained by an accredited agency and should run the HACCP Team meeting not the EHS manager unless its the same person. The HACCP Coordinator can train the team on HACCP to comply with "The team members shall have specific knowledge of HACCP and relevant knowledge of product, process and associated hazards"

 

This link can get you headed in the right direction:

 

http://www.fda.gov/F.../ucm2006801.htm

Thank you so much for clarifications RG3! This is clear answer to my question and the link too!

People safety vs. Product (food) safety.  We have two teams:  Safety team for people and HACCP team for product safety.  There is some overlap:  chemical hazards for people and product, but the control measures are different.