HACCP: Codex Alimentarius Principles

The seven principles every certification scheme is built on.

Food Safety

Principles7
Application steps12
RecognitionNo certificate

Overview

HACCP — Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points — is a preventive, science-based system for identifying and controlling food safety hazards. The Codex Alimentarius General Principles of Food Hygiene (CXC 1-1969, revised 2020) define the seven HACCP principles and the twelve steps for their application, supported by good hygiene practices as prerequisites.

In the European Union, HACCP-based procedures are a legal obligation: Article 5 of Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 requires food business operators to put in place, implement and maintain permanent procedures based on HACCP principles, with flexibility provisions for small businesses. HACCP is also the operational core of every GFSI-benchmarked certification scheme, so a documented HACCP study is the starting point for BRCGS, IFS or FSSC 22000.

A method, not a scheme
Codex publishes principles and guidance. Nobody issues a Codex certificate, and a commercial HACCP attestation does not answer a buyer specification that asks for a recognised scheme.
Legally referenced in the EU
EU food hygiene law requires procedures based on HACCP principles, which is why the study is not optional even where certification is.
Specific or worthless
A study copied from a template and never validated against the actual line is the finding auditors raise most often.

Structure of the Standard

How the requirements are organised.

Ref	Requirement
P1	Hazard analysisIdentify hazards at each step and the measures that control them.
P2	Critical control pointsDetermine the steps where control is essential.
P3	Critical limitsSet validated limits that separate acceptable from unacceptable.
P4	MonitoringDefine what is measured, how often, by whom and with what.
P5	Corrective actionDefine what happens to the product and the process when a limit is breached.
P6	VerificationConfirm the system works, by internal audit, calibration and review of records.
P7	Documentation and recordsKeep evidence proportionate to the process and retrievable during an audit.

Where it Applies

Foundation of every audit
BRCGS, IFS, FSSC and ISO 22000 all assess the HACCP study before anything else.
Small suppliers without certification
A documented, validated study plus evidence of monitoring is the minimum a buyer can work with.
Process change control
Any new line, new packaging format or new supplier of a critical input triggers a review of the study.
Ambient commodity chains
On grain, oilseeds and meal the critical control points are rarely thermal. They are drying to a safe moisture, storage temperature and insect monitoring, fumigation as a controlled treatment with a record, and the sampling plan for mycotoxins – which is a control measure in its own right, because a limit without a representative sample controls nothing.
Honey and bee products
The hazard analysis on honey centres on residues that enter the hive rather than on process steps, plus the heat applied during handling. Warming for pumping and filtration is the step to control, since it drives HMF up and diastase down, and the drum-level moisture check is the control that prevents fermentation.
Vegetable oil refining
Deodorisation is the step where 3-MCPD esters and glycidyl esters form, so it is a process contaminant control point rather than a microbiological one. Chloride load entering the deodoriser, time and temperature are the parameters, and the verification is lot-specific analysis rather than a typical analysis sheet.

How it Compares

Positioning against neighbouring schemes.

Versus a certification scheme
HACCP is one component of every scheme. It is necessary and never sufficient.
Versus prerequisite programmes
Prerequisites control the general environment; HACCP controls the specific hazards that survive it. Confusing the two produces studies with fifteen critical control points and no real control.

Products Covered

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Markets that Expect It

European UnionThe Union as a single regulatory destination: the rules that apply everywhere, the entry procedure, and what still differs country by country.

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FAQ

Is freezing a critical control point?

Usually not. Freezing and frozen storage prevent growth rather than destroy a hazard, so they are normally managed as operational prerequisite programmes with defined limits.

How many critical control points should we have?

As many as the hazard analysis justifies. In frozen fruit, metal and foreign body detection is the common one.

Who has to sign the study?

The HACCP team leader, with evidence of the team’s competence and of management support.

Sources & References

Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 on the hygiene of foodstuffsEUR-Lex, European Union · accessed August 22, 2026HACCP-based procedures. Annex II Chapter IV covers transport conditions.
Regulation (EC) No 178/2002, Article 18 (traceability)EUR-Lex, European Union · accessed August 22, 2026One step back, one step forward traceability.
Regulation (EC) No 2073/2005 on microbiological criteria for foodstuffsEUR-Lex, European Union · accessed August 22, 2026Consolidated text. Check the version in force before quoting a limit.
Regulation (EC) No 183/2005 laying down requirements for feed hygieneEUR-Lex, European Union · accessed August 22, 2026The feed-side equivalent of Regulation 852/2004: registration or approval of feed business operators, HACCP-based procedures, storage and transport hygiene. Relevant to anyone shipping meal or grain that may end up in a compound feed.

Evidence confidence: partial

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Vorezan publishes reference information for buyers and suppliers. We are not a certification body, a customs broker or a guarantor of any third party. Regulatory references point to the framework in force at the review date; verify the current consolidated text and your own obligations before relying on them commercially.

Last updated: August 22, 2026Sources & references

HACCP: Codex Alimentarius Principles

Overview

A method, not a scheme

Legally referenced in the EU

Specific or worthless

Structure of the Standard

Where it Applies

Foundation of every audit

Small suppliers without certification

Process change control

Ambient commodity chains

Honey and bee products

Vegetable oil refining

How it Compares

Versus a certification scheme

Versus prerequisite programmes

Products Covered

Markets that Expect It

FAQ

Sources & References

At a Glance

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Popular Questions

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