Templates and records · HACCP · Clause 5.2 b)
CCP determination with a decision tree
Of all the significant hazards, at which steps product safety is really at stake. The record puts the reasoning in writing.
In one sentence
The CCP determination record documents, for each significant hazard and each step, the answers to the decision tree or chosen method and the conclusion as to whether the step is a critical control point, because Article 5(2)(b) of Regulation (EC) 852/2004 requires you to identify the points at which control is essential to prevent, eliminate or reduce a hazard.
- Where the standard requires it
- HACCP · Clause 5.2 b) Clause references cite the points of Article 5(2) of Regulation (EC) 852/2004, which lists the HACCP principles; they are applied following Codex CXC 1-1969, revised in 2020.
- Type of information
- Mandatory document HACCP plan document (Article 5(2)(b) of Regulation 852/2004)
- Who fills it in
- HACCP team The final decision is approved by the person responsible for the plan
- When
- After the hazard analysis It is reviewed with the analysis and whenever the process changes
- How long it is kept
- Current version and history It is part of the plan and kept up to date with it.
What the standard requires
What HACCP demands and what it leaves to your judgement
The Regulation requires you to identify the critical control points at the step or steps at which control is essential. The Codex proposes the decision tree as a tool, though it accepts other methods if they are consistent; what matters is that the reasoning is written down.
A CCP requires a control that can be monitored against a clear limit and acted on in real time. Measures that do not meet those conditions but are still important are managed as operational prerequisites, which ISO 22000 calls OPRPs.
Too many CCPs dilute attention; too few leave hazards uncontrolled. The balance is justified by the analysis.
Structure
Fields the template should include
- Step and significant hazard
- Question 1: do control measures exist?
- Question 2: does the step eliminate or reduce the hazard to an acceptable level?
- Question 3: could contamination exceed acceptable levels?
- Question 4: will a later step eliminate or reduce the hazard?
- Conclusion: CCP, operational prerequisite or good practice
- Justification
- CCP number
Example
Example: two steps in a fictitious ready-meals kitchen
Company, people and figures are fictitious: the example only shows what a properly completed record looks like.
| Field | Content |
|---|---|
| Step A | Cooking chicken · survival of pathogens |
| Answers A | Q1 yes · Q2 yes: cooking reduces the hazard to an acceptable level |
| Conclusion A | CCP-1 · limit and monitoring in the HACCP control chart |
| Step B | Receipt of vegetables · microbiological contamination |
| Answers B | Q1 yes · Q2 no · Q3 yes · Q4 yes: the subsequent sanitising wash reduces the hazard |
| Conclusion B | Not a CCP; control sits at the washing step |
| Step C | Sanitising wash · assessed as CCP-2 |
At the audit
Mistakes auditors commonly flag
- Steps declared CCPs without any reasoning.
- CCPs that cannot be monitored or measured in real time.
- Every step in the process marked as a CCP.
- Significant hazards that do not end up under any control.
- The decision tree applied to the step without specifying the hazard.
In Kimobox
How this record is kept in Kimobox
- 1Each CCP in the plan is linked to the hazard it controls and to its justification.
- 2Operational prerequisites are managed with their own record and frequency.
- 3Any amendment to the plan is versioned and approved.
- 4The auditor or inspector can consult the plan with a read-only user.
Frequently asked questions
What people ask us before getting started
Is using the decision tree mandatory?
No. The Codex proposes it as a useful tool but accepts other methods. What must be recorded is the justification for why each step is or is not a CCP.
What is the difference between a CCP and an operational prerequisite?
A CCP has a measurable critical limit and monitoring that allows action before the product is released. An operational prerequisite controls a significant hazard, but with less strict action criteria or without a critical limit as such.
Can there be no CCPs at all?
It is possible in simple activities where every hazard is controlled by good hygiene practices. It must be justified in the analysis.
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Sources
Where each figure comes from
References to the official text in force. If a standard is revised, this page is updated and the review date says so.
- Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 on the hygiene of foodstuffs (Article 5 and Annex II) EUR-Lex · 29 April 2004
- General Principles of Food Hygiene, CXC 1-1969 Codex Alimentarius (FAO/WHO) · 2020 revision