The Importance of Verification in Food Safety

Verification of a product’s safety

Verification is an important step in a food safety program. However, it is not always done properly. This is because verification is difficult to understand and implement, especially in an industry where the concepts of validation and verification are not well defined. In fact, validation and verification were added as HACCP principles only in 1989 by the National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF).

These steps are designed to verify that a preventive control has been established and is working as intended. Unlike monitoring, which examines individual critical control points (CCP), verification evaluates all aspects of an FSMS or HACCP plan and prerequisite programs. This includes environmental monitoring, supplier verification, and corrective action records. In addition, it must also include the record review process for the nominated PCQI (person in charge of quality assurance). This is one of the most crucial steps in the whole system. This record review must take place within seven days of the record’s creation.

Verification of a product’s ingredients

When it comes to food safety, there are many terms that sound similar, but have very different meanings. The term “validation” versus “verification” is one such example. While validation is a collection of scientific proofs that show that the process works (i.e., a cook step at a specific temperature kills harmful bacteria), verification is a review of the actual food production to ensure that the process has been implemented correctly. Examples of this are environmental monitoring, supplier verification and a manager reviewing the records of corrective actions. Both validation and verification are necessary to build food safety preventive controls into a company’s process.

Verification of a product’s label

A food label verification check is a vital part of the overall labeling process in your food business. It is a simple and inexpensive activity that can save your food business thousands of dollars by avoiding a product recall. It can be done with a barcode verifier, which is a precision instrument that assesses the printed label against barcode standards. Ideally, a record should be kept of the results of the check. This includes date received, packaging or label batch code, name and signature of the person who conducted the checks, and the results.