11. Step 11: Establish verification procedures

Verification is often defined as "the application of methods, procedures, tests and other evaluations, in addition to monitoring, to determine compliance with the HACCP plan". In fact, the aim is to verify both compliance and the effectiveness of the system in place, in a genuine process of continuous improvement. According to the Codex Alimentarius, the four verification activities are :

• validation of the HACCP plan;

• HACCP audit systems ;

• equipment calibration ;

• targeted sampling and analysis.

Validation is the action taken to assess whether the HACCP plan identifies and controls the significant hazards of the production for which it was drawn up (Codex Alimentarius ). In particular, it is necessary to...