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GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF FOOD HYGIENE
CXC 1-1969
Adopted in 1969. Amended in 1999. Revised in 1997, 2003, 2020. Editorial corrections in 2011.
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CXC 1-1969 2
INTRODUCTION
People have the right to expect the food that they eat to be safe and suitable for consumption. Foodborne
illness and foodborne injury can be severe or fatal or have a negative impact on human health over the longer
term. Furthermore, outbreaks of foodborne illness can damage trade and tourism. Food spoilage is wasteful,
costly, threatens food security and can adversely affect trade and consumer confidence.
International food trade and the flow of travellers are increasing, bringing important social and economic
benefits. However, this also makes the spread of illness around the world easier. Eating habits have undergone
major changes in many countries and new food production, preparation, storage, and distribution techniques
have developed to reflect this. Effective food hygiene practices, therefore, are vital to avoid the adverse human
health and economic consequences of foodborne illness, foodborne injury, and food spoilage. Everyone,
including primary producers, importers, manufacturers and processors, food warehouse/logistics operators,
food handlers, retailers, and consumers, has a responsibility to ensure that food is safe and suitable for
consumption. Food Business Operators (FBOs) should be aware of and understand the hazards associated
with the food they produce, transport, store and sell, and the measures required to control those hazards
relevant to their business, so that food reaching consumers is safe and suitable for use.
This document outlines the general principles that should be understood and followed by FBOs at all stages
of the food chain and that provide a basis for competent authorities to oversee food safety and suitability.
Taking into account the stage in the food chain, the nature of the product, the relevant contaminants, and
whether the relevant contaminants adversely affect safety, suitability or both, these principles will enable food
businesses to develop their own food hygiene practices and necessary food safety control measures, while
complying with requirements set by competent authorities. While it is the FBOs’ responsibility to provide safe
food, for some FBOs this may be as simple as ensuring that the WHO 5 keys to Safer Food are adequately
implemented. The 5 keys are: ‘keep clean, separate raw and cooked, cook thoroughly, keep food at safe
temperatures and use safe water and raw materials.
FBOs need to be aware of hazards that may affect their food. FBOs need to understand the consequences of
these hazards for consumer health and should ensure that they are properly managed. Good Hygiene
Practices (GHPs) are the foundation of any effective control of hazards associated with their businesses. For
some FBOs effective implementation of GHPs will be sufficient to address food safety.
The sufficiency of the implemented GHP to address food safety could be determined through conducting a
hazard analysis and determining how to control identified hazards. However, not all FBOs have the expertise
to do this. If the FBO is not able to conduct a hazard analysis, the FBO may rely on information on appropriate
food safety practices from external sources such as that provided by competent authorities, academia or other
competent bodies (e.g. trade associations or professional societies) that has been based on the identification
of relevant hazards and controls. For example, requirements in regulations for production of safe food are
based on hazard analysis often conducted by competent authorities. Similarly, guidance documents from trade
associations and other organizations that describe food safety procedures are based on hazard analyses
conducted by experts knowledgeable about the hazards and controls needed to ensure the safety of specific
types of products. When external generic guidance is used the FBO should make sure that the guidance
corresponds with the activities of the establishment and ensure all relevant hazards are controlled.
All GHPs are important but some GHPs have a greater impact on food safety. Thus, for some GHPs, based
on safety concerns with the food, greater attention may be needed to provide safe food. For example, the
cleaning of equipment and surfaces which come into contact with ready-to-eat food should warrant greater
attention than other areas such as the cleaning of walls and ceilings, because if food contact surfaces are not
properly cleaned, this could lead to direct contamination of food. Greater attention may include a higher
frequency of application, of monitoring and of verification.
In some circumstances, the implementation of GHPs may not be sufficient to ensure food safety due to the
complexity of the food operation and/or specific hazards associated with the product or process, technological
advances (e.g. extending shelf-life through modified atmosphere packaging) or end use of the product (e.g.
products destined for a special dietary purpose). In such cases, when there are significant hazards identified
through hazard analysis as not being controlled by GHPs, they should be addressed in the HACCP plan.
Chapter One of this document describes GHPs, which are the basis of all food hygiene systems to support the
production of safe and suitable food. Chapter Two describes HACCP. HACCP principles can be applied
throughout the food chain from primary production to final consumption and their implementation should be
guided by scientific evidence of risks to human health. The table in Annex 1 provides a comparison of control
measures applied as GHPs and those applied at Critical Control Points (CCPs) with examples.
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OBJECTIVES
The General Principles of Food Hygiene: Good Hygiene Practices (GHPs) and the Hazard Analysis and Critical
Control Point (HACCP) System aim to:
provide principles and guidance on the application of GHPs applicable throughout the food chain to
provide food that is safe and suitable for consumption;
provide guidance on the application of HACCP principles;
clarify the relationship between GHPs and HACCP; and
provide the basis on which sector and product-specific codes of practice can be established.
SCOPE
This document provides a framework of general principles for producing safe and suitable food for consumption
by outlining necessary hygiene and food safety controls to be implemented in production (including primary
production), processing, manufacturing, preparation, packaging, storage, distribution, retail, food service
operation and transport of food, and where appropriate, specific food safety control measures at certain steps
throughout the food chain.
USE
General
The document is intended for use by FBOs (including primary producers, importers, manufacturers/processors,
food warehouse/logistics operators, food service operators, retailers and traders) and competent authorities,
as appropriate. It provides basic information to meet the needs of food businesses, irrespective of the nature
of product and size of food business, in the context of food trade. However, it should be noted that it is not
possible for the document to provide specific guidance for all situations and specific types of food businesses
and the nature and extent of food safety risks associated with individual circumstances.
There will be situations where some of the specific recommendations contained in this document are not
applicable. The fundamental question for each food business operator in every case is “what is necessary and
appropriate to ensure the safety and suitability of food for consumption?”
The text indicates where such questions are likely to arise by using the phrases “where necessary” and “where
appropriate”. In deciding whether a measure is necessary or appropriate, an evaluation of the likelihood and
severity of the hazard toward establishing the potential harmful effects to consumers should be made, taking
into account any relevant knowledge of the operation and hazards, including available scientific information.
This approach allows the measures in this document to be flexibly and sensibly applied with a regard for the
overall objectives of producing food which is safe and suitable for consumption. In so doing it takes into account
the wide diversity of food chain operations and practices and varying degrees of risk to public health involved
in producing and handling food.
Roles of Competent Authorities, Food Business Operators, and Consumers
Competent authorities are responsible for deciding how these general principles are best applied through
legislation, regulation or guidance to:
protect consumers from illness, injury, or death caused by consumption of food;
ensure FBOs implement an effective control system so that food is safe and suitable for consumption;
maintain confidence in domestically and internationally traded food; and
provide information that effectively communicates the principles of food hygiene to food business
operators and consumers.
FBOs should apply the hygienic practices and food safety principles set out in this document to:
develop, implement and verify processes that provide food that is safe and suitable for its intended
use;
ensure personnel are competent as appropriate to their job activities;
build a positive food safety culture by demonstrating their commitment to providing safe and suitable
food and encouraging appropriate food safety practices;
contribute to maintaining confidence in domestically and internationally traded food; and
ensure that consumers have clear and easily understood information to enable them to identify the
presence of food allergens, protect their food from contamination, and prevent the growth/survival of
foodborne pathogens by storing, handling and preparing food correctly.
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Consumers should play their role by following relevant guidance and instructions for food handling, preparation,
and storage and applying appropriate food hygiene measures.
GENERAL PRINCIPLES
(i) Food safety and suitability should be controlled using a science-based preventive approach, for
example a food hygiene system. GHPs should ensure that food is produced and handled in an
environment that minimizes the presence of contaminants.
(ii) Properly applied prerequisite programmes, which include GHPs, should provide the foundation for an
effective HACCP system.
(iii) Each FBO should be aware of the hazards associated with the raw materials and other ingredients,
the production or preparation process, and the environment in which the food is produced and/or
handled, as appropriate to the food business.
(iv) Depending on the nature of the food, food process, and the potential for adverse health effects, to
control hazards it may be sufficient to apply GHPs, including, as appropriate, some that require more
attention than others, as they have a greater impact on food safety. When the application of GHPs
alone is not sufficient, a combination of GHPs and additional control measures at CCPs should be
applied.
(v) Control measures that are essential to achieve an acceptable level of food safety, should be
scientifically validated
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(vi) The application of control measures should be subject to monitoring, corrective actions, verification,
and documentation, as appropriate to the nature of the food product and the size of the food business.
(vii) Food hygiene systems should be reviewed to determine if modifications are needed. This should be
done periodically and whenever there is a significant change that could impact the potential hazards
and/or the control measures (e.g. new process, new ingredient, new product, new equipment, new
scientific knowledge) associated with the food business.
(viii) Appropriate communication about the food and food process should be maintained among all relevant
parties to ensure food safety and suitability across the entire food chain.
Management Commitment to Food Safety
Fundamental to the successful functioning of any food hygiene system is the establishment and maintenance
of a positive food safety culture acknowledging the importance of human behaviour in providing safe and
suitable food. The following elements are important in cultivating a positive food safety culture:
commitment of the management and all personnel to the production and handling of safe food;
leadership to set the right direction and to engage all personnel in food safety practices;
awareness of the importance of food hygiene by all personnel in the food business;
open and clear communication among all personnel in the food business, including communication of
deviations and expectations; and
the availability of sufficient resources to ensure the effective functioning of the food hygiene system.
Management should ensure the effectiveness of the food hygiene systems in place by:
ensuring that roles, responsibilities, and authorities are clearly communicated in the food business;
maintaining the integrity of the food hygiene system when changes are planned and implemented;
verifying that controls are carried out and working and that documentation is up to date;
ensuring that the appropriate training and supervision are in place for personnel;
ensuring compliance with relevant regulatory requirements; and
encouraging continual improvement, where appropriate, taking into account developments in science,
technology and best practice.
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Guidelines for the Validation of Food Safety Control Measures (CXG 69-2008)
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CXC 1-1969 5
DEFINITIONS
For the purposes of this document the following definitions apply:
Acceptable level: A level of hazard in a food at or below which the food is considered to be safe according to
its intended use.
Allergen cross-contact: the unintentional incorporation of an allergenic food, or ingredient, into another food
that is not intended to contain that allergenic food or ingredient.
Cleaning: The removal of soil, food residues, dirt, grease or other objectionable matter.
Competent Authority: The government authority or official body authorized by the government that is
responsible for the setting of regulatory food safety requirements and/or for the organization of official controls
including enforcement.
Contaminant: Any biological, chemical or physical agent, foreign matter or other substances not intentionally
added to food that may compromise food safety or suitability.
Contamination: The introduction or occurrence of a contaminant in the food or food environment.
Control:
when used as a noun: The state wherein correct procedures are being followed and any established
criteria are being met.
when used a verb: To take all necessary actions to ensure and maintain compliance with established
criteria and procedures.
Control measure: Any action or activity that can be used to prevent or eliminate a hazard or reduce it to an
acceptable level.
Corrective action: Any action taken when a deviation occurs in order to re-establish control, segregate and
determine the disposition of the affected product if any and prevent or minimize reoccurrence of the deviation.
Critical Control Point (CCP): A step at which a control measure or control measures, essential to control a
significant hazard, is/are applied in a HACCP system.
Critical limit: A criterion, observable or measurable, relating to a control measure at a CCP which separates
acceptability from unacceptability of the food.
Deviation: Failure to meet a critical limit or to follow a GHP procedure.
Disinfection: Reduction by means of biological or chemical agents and/or physical methods in the number of
viable microorganisms on surfaces, in water or air to a level that does not compromise food safety and/or
suitability.
Flow diagram: A systematic representation of the sequence of steps used in the production or manufacture
of food.
Food business operator (FBO): The entity responsible for operating a business at any step in the food chain.
Food Handler: Any person who directly handles packaged or unpackaged food, equipment and utensils used
for food, or surfaces that come into contact with food and that is expected, therefore, to comply with food
hygiene requirements.
Food hygiene: All conditions and measures necessary to ensure the safety and suitability of food at all stages
of the food chain.
Food hygiene system: Prerequisite programmes, supplemented with control measures at CCPs, as
appropriate, that when taken as a whole, ensure that food is safe and suitable for its intended use.
Food safety: Assurance that food will not cause adverse health effects to the consumer when it is prepared
and/or eaten according to its intended use.
Food suitability: Assurance that food is acceptable for human consumption according to its intended use.
Good Hygiene Practices (GHPs): Fundamental measures and conditions applied at any step within the food
chain to provide safe and suitable food.
HACCP Plan: Documentation or set of documents, prepared in accordance with the principles of HACCP to
ensure control of significant hazards in the food business.
HACCP System: The development of a HACCP plan and the implementation of the procedures in accordance
with that plan.