Raise food safety awareness in food and drink operations
Overview
This standard is about the skills and knowledge needed for you to raise awareness of food safety issues in food and drink operations. It involves reporting any potential food safety hazards and contributing to improvements to food safety procedures. It is also essential to maintaining the quality of the final product.
You will need to be able to raise awareness of food safety. You also need to show you can recognise and take action on risks to food safety. You must also show you can contribute to improving food safety.
This standard is for you if you work in food and drink operations or animal feed operations and your job requires you to enter the food manufacturing or processing area.
Performance criteria
You must be able to:
Raise awareness of food safety
inform team members of required standards relating to personal hygiene, raw materials, product contamination, cross-contamination, spoilage, spillage or infestation
highlight signs and training material that emphasise safe working practices
inform team members of any amendments in standard operating procedures that may be required in response to work priorities
clarify the application of standard operating procedures when team members require guidance
Recognise and take action on risks to food safety
identify and make note of indicators which suggest that food safety has been breached in accordance with organisational requirements
take immediate action to reduce the impact of the risk in accordance with organisational requirements
apply signs or labels to check that any potentially contaminated food is not re-used in accordance with organisational requirements
inform relevant senior and technical staff of the potential food safety risk in accordance with organisational requirements
pass on details of the nature of the potential food safety risk to relevant colleagues in accordance with organisational requirements
Contribute to improving food safety
actively co-operate with and contribute to relevant control and audit activities in accordance with organisational requirements
examine audit report findings which impact directly on the work areas or processes in own area of responsibility
identify areas in standard operating procedures where technical improvements can be made to working practices
communicate suggestions relating to potential standard operating procedures to relevant technical staff
Knowledge and Understanding
You need to know and understand:
- the organisation's requirements for personal hygiene, safety acceptance targets/requirements for raw materials and finished product and how these should be maintained
- your own role and responsibility and level of authority in respect of food handling and food risk management practices
- the type of health conditions and symptoms and range of behaviours which may result in product contamination, cross-contamination, damage or threat to food safety
- the food safety procedures in the workplace
- how to identify and report unsafe situations and problems
- the reporting procedures – how, and to whom to report problems or make suggestions for improvement
- the food safety risk assessment procedures and why they are important
- the duties and responsibilities of staff and managers under current regulations
- why it is important to make all employees/workers and site visitors aware of food safety regulations and how they affect working practices and procedures
- the methods that can be used to inform staff members of their responsibility for maintaining food safety
- how training contributes to ensuring compliance with food safety measures
- how standard operating procedures are used to set measurable standards for food safety compliance
- where and how to obtain advice, support and assistance to check food safety is maintained and promoted
- the internal resources, including staff within other departments, that can be utilised to increase the awareness of food safety