Food defense is the process of protecting food products from intentional adulteration or contamination which aims to harm consumers, business establishments, or the general public. Food defense is crucial in proactively implementing programs that help avoid food safety incidents, costly recalls, and disruptions in food production.
What is a Food Defense Plan?
A food defense plan is a tool used by quality managers to help prevent the intentional contamination of food products. It is also a practical guide for mitigating incidents caused by intentional food contamination.
This article will briefly discuss (1) what makes an effective food defense plan; (2) technology to help ensure the proper monitoring of the food defense plan implementation; and (3) free food defense plan templates you can use to address threats to food defense.
What Makes an Effective Food Defense Plan?
Adapted from the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), a food defense plan can be effective in preventing food contamination through the following steps:
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Planning
Form a team that will create a food defense plan based on assessments of vulnerable critical control points in food production and handling (related: TACCP). There are also tools available (FDA’s food defense plan builder) that can help build a customized food defense plan.
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Implementation
It is critical to engage the employees and get their buy-in when implementing a food defense plan. Conduct employee trainings and meet with stakeholders to implement processes that proactively promotes the safety of food products.
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Internal monitoring and analyzation
Perform internal audits to catch gaps or non-conformance with the implementation of a food defense plan. Analyze food safety inspections to determine the most common non-conforming items and discover areas for improvement in food defense.
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Continuous improvement
Review the food defense plan at least once a year. Based on audit reports, industry best practices, and the latest regulations on food safety, determine if the food defense plan needs to be updated or improve how it is implemented to keep up with new and changing threats to food defense.
Smart Technology to Monitor Food Defense
With the goal of food defense to keep food products safe from threats of intentional contamination, it is important to ensure that its implementation is consistently monitored and documented. iAuditor, the world’s most powerful quality and safety inspection app, can help quality managers reinforce the proper implementation of food defense through streamlined and paperless monitoring and reporting. With iAuditor mobile app and software, you can:
- Schedule inspections and conduct internal audits using mobile-ready food safety checklists and food defense plan templates.
- Take photos and describe food safety issues using the app.
- Proactively address urgent issues found and receive updates on assigned corrective actions.
- Save time and reduce costs by generating paperless reports on the spot. Preview a sample web and PDF report.
- Use for free with small teams. Unlimited reports and storage for premium accounts.
