Hello! I'm sure I need to spend some time digging through this wonderful forum but off chance someone here could help to point me in a more precise direction (@Charles C?) -I'm based in the UK and am trying to open a specialty coffee roastery. Full disclosure, my husband roasts and but I'm the one attempting to sort out all the paperwork from legal, environmental and operational point of view - have no industry knowledge so much of what I need (most?) for the HACCP document is deep dark woods for me but I'm learning. Nevertheless, may I ask what would you recommend to include in the "manual" to address the major hazard areas (as I'm told by the EHO chap) such as: - toxins: bacteria, moulds, aflatoxins, other microbiological organisms etc. - which ones are the ones to list, how to measure them, with what, what are the ranges, what's the permitted deviation if any, source to validate and quote any numbers used? I've zero idea what I'm meant to highlight here at CCP and preventative action to take. - chemical contamination: is there anything specific that i would need to list? Common sense dictates don't have any external chemicals near your green coffee beans, but is there anything industry-specific that i should know and therefore address please? Apologies in advance for dumb questions, which some I'm sure are, I'm just trying my best to put 'something' sensible together.- physical contamination: I can think of stones and metals but i wonder if i need to have measures in place (screens, metal detector) if our bean provider has checks for these as their CCP already? Our council are being very cryptic of what they want to see addressed, so their help is as good as none. And would chipped fingernails be a CCP? Seems ludicrous to even mention it but I will include it under general personal hygiene. - allergen contamination: is there any to worry about?! I wasn't sure what EHO meant by this. I suppose don't eat peanuts before touching green coffee and not washing hands... Joking but not joking??He was also quite adamant I get an accredited lab to do a microbiological test as well as show moisture levels, water activity, pH levels (!?), and if I decided to buy necessary measuring instruments myself, to indicate acceptable values and reference source. EHO also stressed importance of traceability and recall procedures, as well as additional procedures to ensure that entire HACCP framework is operating as it should. Frankly, I'm at loss on all those points. Do you know of any sources of reference that I could use? Or maybe someone has a similar HACCP document that I could have a look at and maybe use some of the information to build onto? I realise it's different for each company, but surely chemical, biological and physical hazard CCP (topic- and measurement-wise) are the same for everyone in the coffee roasting business? And finally, perhaps separately, if I were to spend money and buy all the instruments myself (everything is self-funded ), what exactly do I need to think about please? On my list I have:
- trade approved precision scales
- colour meter as an independent roast quality assessment tool (to be used alongside Artisan)
- moisture meter
- ?? What else i'm missing that's "A MUST HAVE"?
Do you guys use any other tools and what for? I read about salmonella strips (will look into it), what else I should be purchasing, gadget or H&S wise?
Finally, sorry this is so incredibly long - i just don't have anyone to ask! - if i'm a small roaster with one machine situation in a garage adjacent to home and selling exclusively online, do you think I need to write a risk procedure manual too? Say, identify possible risk - loose cables. Corrective action - ensure there are no loose cables lying around and becoming a trip hazard. Verification - check for loose cables before starting work every time.
THANK YOU so much in advance. I appreciate all of your help in advance.
Cheers,
Cynthia (from a major new lockdown in UK!)