PRP 14: Work Methodology

Besides personnel hygiene, working in a hygienic way is also an essential requirement. Working in a hygienic way means that the way that is used for working contributes to:

• Avoid extra contamination in or on products and machinery.
• Avoid that germs that are present in the products will be able to grow.
• Maintain the good quality of the raw materials, the intermediary products and the end products.
• Achieve a constant quality.

To achieve that everybody works in a hygienic way, the work instructions need to be clear. Therefore, the KISS-principle is used;

Keep It Straight Simple

Concrete information in clear language must indicate what is expected from the personnel on a certain production place and must also take care that different staff members (e.g. shift work or replacement of personnel) work and control in the same way.

Working instructions and control forms need also some explanation. Therefore, training of the personnel is necessary to ensure that they work in a hygienic way.

When a HACCP study is elaborated Critical Control Points (CCP) will be present in the production processes. It is a part of hygienic working that the personnel on the work floor knows where the critical points are, which controls need to be executed with what frequency and what needs to be done and who needs to be informed when something goes wrong.

Some examples of working in a hygienic way are:

• Remove packaging material from the packaging machine after finishing the work
• Tidy up broken glass immediately and report it
• Do not leave inspection places unmanned behind
• Put finished products, that need to be stored in a cooled room, as soon as possible in a cooled room
• Clean up spilt products as soon as possible
• Don’t let cleaning and disinfection products laying around
• Report deviations
• Be careful with finished products to avoid the damaging of the packaging material
• Fill in the forms in a correct way and with the necessary responsibility