The 7 principles of HACCP are hazard analysis, identifying critical control points (CCPs), establishing critical limits, monitoring procedures, corrective actions, verification procedures, and record-keeping. Together, these principles form the foundation of every HACCP plan and help food businesses systematically identify, control, and prevent food safety hazards.
HACCP principles are used across restaurants, healthcare, food-to-go operations, central kitchens, and food manufacturing businesses. Rather than relying on finished-product testing, HACCP focuses on controlling hazards throughout food operations before unsafe food reaches consumers.
In the UK, food businesses are required to operate food safety procedures based on HACCP principles. Whether you are preparing meals in a restaurant kitchen, or running a healthcare foodservice operation, understanding the HACCP process is essential for compliance and protecting public health.
HACCP stands for Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points.
The name describes the two core activities of the system:
HACCP is recognised globally as the most widely used food safety management framework and forms the basis of many food safety standards used throughout the food industry.
If you're looking for a complete overview of the system itself, see our guide on what HACCP is.
HACCP principles are the seven structured steps used to design, implement, and maintain a HACCP plan.
Each principle focuses on a different aspect of hazard control, from identifying food safety hazards to documenting evidence that controls are working effectively.
The seven principles of HACCP are:
Together, these principles create a systematic approach for controlling food safety hazards throughout food preparation, production, storage, transport, and service.
In practical terms, HACCP means managing food safety by controlling processes instead of relying solely on finished-product inspections.
Traditional quality control systems often focused on testing products after production. HACCP takes a preventive approach by identifying where hazards could occur and implementing controls before problems develop.
For example, rather than testing every cooked chicken portion for pathogens, a HACCP system establishes cooking temperatures, monitoring procedures, corrective actions, and verification activities that prevent undercooked products from being served in the first place.
This preventive approach reduces food safety risks, improves consistency, and helps businesses demonstrate due diligence during inspections and audits.
Understanding HACCP terminology makes it easier to develop, implement, and maintain a food safety management system.
Hazard analysis is the process of identifying and evaluating biological, chemical, physical, and allergen hazards that could occur during food operations.
A CCP is a step where control is essential to prevent, eliminate, or reduce a food safety hazard to an acceptable level.
A critical limit is a measurable minimum or maximum value that determines whether a CCP remains under control.
Examples include cooking temperatures, cooling times, pH levels, or water activity limits.
Monitoring consists of routine observations or measurements used to confirm that CCPs remain within critical limits.
Corrective actions are predefined responses that must be taken when monitoring identifies a deviation from a critical limit.
Digital monitoring checks include corrective actions. If a task is out of range, a prompt will guide your team on how to respond, ensuring food safety and saving time on training.
Verification confirms that the HACCP system is functioning as intended and continues to control hazards effectively.
Prerequisite programmes (PRPs) are the basic food safety practices that create safe operating conditions before HACCP controls are applied.
Before applying the seven principles of HACCP, businesses must establish prerequisite programmes and complete five preliminary steps.
These preparation stages ensure that the HACCP plan is based on accurate information and realistic operational conditions.
Prerequisite programmes are the foundation of food safety.
They control general hazards that exist throughout the operation and create an environment where HACCP controls can function effectively.
Common prerequisite programmes include:
Without strong prerequisite programmes, businesses often end up treating routine operational controls as CCPs, making HACCP systems unnecessarily complex.
A digital cleaning checklist helps teams complete cleaning tasks consistently and on time, strengthening your cleaning and sanitation prerequisite program (PRP). It provides real-time visibility into completion status, reduces supervision time, and creates auditable records that help demonstrate due diligence during inspections and audits.
The five preliminary steps of HACCPAfter prerequisite programmes are established, the HACCP team completes five preliminary preparation steps.
The HACCP team should include individuals with knowledge of food safety, operations, production, equipment, and quality management.
Depending on the business, this may include:
For multi-site restaurant groups or healthcare foodservice providers, cross-functional input is especially valuable because hazards may vary across locations.
HACCP Team example
The HACCP team must document:
This information helps identify hazards associated with the product and determine appropriate controls.
Example of product description
The intended use of the product and the characteristics of the consumer group can significantly affect hazard severity.
Special consideration should be given to vulnerable groups such as:
The process flow diagram visually maps every step of the operation.
It should include:
A detailed flow diagram helps ensure that no potential hazards are overlooked during hazard analysis.
FoodDocs software will build your flow chart automatically, based on your selections about your company’s processes. Creating the HACCP Plan takes less than 1 hour.
Example of flow chart diagramThe HACCP team should verify the flow diagram through on-site observation.
Walking through the operation often reveals process variations, equipment changes, or practical workflow differences that were not captured during initial documentation.
Only after the flow diagram has been verified should the team begin applying the seven HACCP principles.
After addressing the five preliminary HACCP plan steps and establishing a solid HACCP team, the 7 steps of HACCP can be fulfilled. Under these HACCP principles, potential biological, chemical, and physical hazards are identified and analyzed for their potential to cause food safety issues.
The first HACCP principle is to identify and evaluate all food safety hazards that could reasonably occur during food operations.
Hazard analysis forms the foundation of the entire HACCP process. If hazards are missed during this stage, the effectiveness of every subsequent HACCP principle is weakened.
FoodDocs software creates your hazard analysis automatically, saving more than 3 weeks on filling documentation.
Example of HACCP Hazard Analysis
The HACCP team evaluates four categories of hazards:
Biological hazards include harmful microorganisms such as:
These pathogens are among the most common causes of foodborne illness.
Chemical hazards may include:
Physical hazards are foreign objects that may enter food, such as:
Allergens represent a major food safety risk.
Common allergens include:
The hazard analysis should evaluate both the likelihood and severity of each hazard before determining appropriate controls.
A more detailed discussion of hazard identification can be found in our guide to food safety hazards.
The second HACCP principle is to identify the process steps where control is essential to prevent, eliminate, or reduce a food safety hazard to an acceptable level.
A Critical Control Point (CCP) is the last stage where a significant hazard can be controlled before the food reaches the consumer. Not every process step is a CCP. The HACCP team must determine which controls are truly critical to food safety.
Common CCP examples in foodservice and catering operations include:
For example, cooking chicken to the required core temperature controls Salmonella and Campylobacter. If this step fails, consumers may be exposed to harmful pathogens, making cooking a CCP.
A care home kitchen may identify chilled storage as a CCP because temperature abuse could allow pathogen growth in ready-to-eat foods served to vulnerable residents.
Many businesses use a HACCP decision tree to determine whether a process step qualifies as a CCP. The decision tree provides a structured method for evaluating hazards and control measures consistently.
Examples of CCPs
The third HACCP principle is to define measurable limits that indicate whether a CCP remains under control.
Critical limits establish the safe operating boundaries for each CCP. When monitoring shows that a critical limit has been exceeded, the process is considered out of control and corrective action is required.
Critical limits are normally based on:
Examples of critical limits include:
| CCP | Critical Limit |
|---|---|
| Cooking poultry | Minimum core temperature of 75°C |
| Hot holding | 63°C or above |
| Chilled storage | 8°C or below |
| Freezer storage | -18°C or below |
| Sanitiser concentration | Within manufacturer's specification |
| Metal detection | Specified detection sensitivity achieved |
Critical limits must be:
Vague instructions such as "cook thoroughly" or "keep cold" are not critical limits because they cannot be objectively measured.
Examples of critical limits
The fourth HACCP principle is to establish monitoring procedures that confirm critical limits are consistently met.
Monitoring provides evidence that CCPs remain under control and allows teams to identify problems before unsafe food reaches consumers.
Every monitoring procedure should answer four questions:
Examples include:
FoodDocs digital app is the best solution to monitor your CCPs. App notifications help your team keep track of and complete all daily food safety tasks on time. Real-time monitoring records improve compliance with HACCP requirements, provide instant visibility into missed checks, and help food safety leaders take corrective actions before issues become food safety risks
How will it be monitored?
Examples include:
Examples include:
Example of monitoring procedures in FoodDocs Hdigital HACCP Plan
Monitoring responsibilities should be assigned to trained personnel.
For example:
| CCP | Monitoring Activity |
|---|---|
| Cooking | Check and record core temperature |
| Chilled storage | Record fridge temperature |
| Hot holding | Verify holding temperature |
| Cooling | Measure cooling times and temperatures |
Monitoring records are often reviewed during EHO inspections and third-party audits. Missing records frequently result in non-conformities even when food safety controls are being applied correctly.
Digital monitoring systems can improve consistency by providing reminders, built-in instructions, and real-time visibility of missed checks. For multi-site restaurant groups and healthcare foodservice providers, this reduces the time spent supervising paper records while improving compliance.
The fifth HACCP principle is to define what actions must be taken when monitoring identifies a deviation from a critical limit.
Corrective actions ensure that food safety risks are addressed immediately and consistently.
Every corrective action procedure should answer:
Examples include:
| Deviation | Corrective Action |
|---|---|
| Chicken cooked to only 68°C | Continue cooking until target temperature is achieved |
| Fridge exceeds temperature limit | Move food to alternative refrigeration and investigate cause |
| Cooling time exceeded | Dispose of affected food if safety cannot be verified |
| Allergen labelling error | Isolate product and prevent distribution |
Corrective actions should be documented every time a deviation occurs.
Digital monitoring checks include corrective actions. If a task is out of range, a prompt will guide your team on how to respond, ensuring food safety and saving time on training. Also, you'll always have a documented proof of all your deviations.
A common weakness during HACCP audits is finding monitoring records that show a deviation but no documented corrective action. Auditors want evidence that problems were identified, assessed, and resolved appropriately.
Examples of corrective actions in FoodDocs software
The sixth HACCP principle is to verify that the HACCP system is functioning effectively and controlling hazards as intended.
While monitoring checks individual CCPs, verification evaluates the effectiveness of the HACCP system as a whole.
Verification activities may include:
Verification helps answer important questions:
For example, if repeated deviations occur at the same CCP, verification may reveal that the critical limit is unrealistic, staff training is insufficient, or equipment performance has deteriorated.
Verification should also take place whenever:
Regular verification helps ensure the HACCP system remains relevant and effective as operations evolve.
Example of verification procedures in digital HACCP plan
The seventh HACCP principle is to maintain records that demonstrate the HACCP system has been properly implemented, monitored, and verified.
Documentation provides evidence that food safety controls are working and that due diligence requirements are being met.
Typical HACCP records include:
Digital monitoring logbook gives you a detailed overview of your completed tasks. You can easily track all the details about the task completion, including the result, the person performing the task, or the exact completion time. This helps save time from going on-site, checking task fulfillment, finding archived logs, and making data analysis possible.
Accurate documentation allows businesses to demonstrate compliance during:
For multi-site operators, digital record keeping provides additional benefits by improving visibility across locations and making records instantly accessible during audits.
Hazard analysis is generally considered the most important HACCP principle because every other principle depends on it.
If hazards are not correctly identified and assessed, businesses may:
A strong hazard analysis creates the foundation for the entire HACCP plan. This is why HACCP teams should dedicate sufficient time, expertise, and operational knowledge to this stage of development.
That said, all seven principles work together. Weak monitoring, poor corrective actions, or incomplete records can undermine an otherwise strong hazard analysis.
HACCP principles help food businesses prevent food safety problems before they occur.
The system provides a structured approach to controlling hazards throughout food operations and offers several important benefits:
For restaurant groups, and healthcare companies, HACCP principles also help standardise food safety practices across multiple locations.
Rather than relying on individual judgement, teams follow clearly documented procedures supported by monitoring, verification, and corrective actions.
All UK food businesses must operate food safety procedures based on HACCP principles.
Under UK food hygiene legislation, businesses are required to identify food safety hazards and implement appropriate controls to manage them. The complexity of the HACCP system should reflect the nature and size of the operation, but the underlying principles apply across the food industry.
Businesses commonly using HACCP-based procedures include:
A multi-site restaurant group may have a highly detailed HACCP system with standardised controls across dozens of locations, while a small café may operate a simplified HACCP-based system. The objective remains the same: identifying hazards and controlling food safety risks.
For a broader explanation of how HACCP fits into a food safety management system, see our guide to HACCP systems.
Many HACCP plans fail not because the principles are incorrect, but because they are implemented inconsistently.
The following mistakes are frequently identified during audits and EHO inspections.
One of the most common mistakes is identifying too many critical control points.
Not every control measure is a CCP. Many hazards are controlled through prerequisite programmes such as cleaning, maintenance, allergen management, and staff hygiene procedures.
Too many CCPs create unnecessary monitoring requirements and make HACCP plans difficult to manage.
Poor hazard analysis often results in:
Hazard analysis should always be based on actual food operations rather than copied from generic templates.
Monitoring records should be completed at the time activities occur.
Auditors frequently identify situations where staff complete records at the end of a shift rather than during the actual monitoring activity. This reduces confidence in the accuracy of records and weakens due diligence evidence.
A monitoring record showing a failed temperature check without a documented corrective action creates a gap in the HACCP system.
Every deviation should clearly show:
Food businesses change constantly.
New menu items, new equipment, supplier changes, process modifications, and new legislation can all affect hazards and controls.
Many businesses develop a HACCP plan and then fail to review it regularly. HACCP plans should be reassessed periodically and whenever significant operational changes occur.
HACCP certification is an independent assessment that verifies whether a HACCP system has been implemented effectively.
Although HACCP-based procedures are required by law, HACCP certification itself is generally voluntary unless required by customers, contracts, or specific industry standards.
Certification audits typically assess:
During certification audits, auditors review both documentation and real-world implementation. Having a well-written HACCP plan is not enough if staff are not following procedures consistently.
Certification can provide benefits such as:
HACCP certification process
Environmental Health Officers (EHOs) assess whether food businesses have effective food safety controls based on HACCP principles.
During inspections, EHOs typically review:
Inspectors want to see evidence that food safety procedures are not only documented but actively followed.
For example, if a business identifies chilled storage as a CCP, inspectors may request:
This is one reason why accurate record keeping is such an important HACCP principle.
Digital food safety systems help businesses apply HACCP principles more consistently while reducing administrative workload.
Many food businesses still manage HACCP using paper records, spreadsheets, and manual filing systems. While these methods can work, they often create challenges such as:
Digital food safety software such as FoodDocs helps address these challenges by standardising monitoring procedures and storing records automatically.
Benefits include:
FoodDocs can also generate a complete HACCP plan in less than one hour, automatically creating hazard analysis, critical control points, critical limits, prerequisite programmes, SOPs, monitoring procedures, verification activities, and documentation requirements. This can save food safety teams weeks of manual work compared with building a HACCP plan from scratch.
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