make sure they achieve compliance. This guidebook has been revised to make it easier for users to relate its practical advice with the need to be in compliance with regulatory requirements Preliminary ste FSIS and most HACCP experts believe that a company will do a better job of HACCP plan development if it takes some preliminary steps before it attempts to apply the seven principles and write a plan. FSiS believes that a company should take the following steps to get started 1. Assemble the HACCP team, including one person(consultant, employee, or other resource) who is HACCP-trained 2. Describe the food and its method of production and distribution; identify the intended use and consumers of the products 3. Develop and verify pr 4. Decide whether products can be grouped using the process categories in 4172(b)(1) The first part of this Guidebook discusses how companies, especially small or very small companies, can go about taking these preliminary steps. Numbers 2-4 are parts of the regulatory requirements in $4172(a) 1. Assemble the HACCP team, including one person who is HACCP-trained Assembling a HACCP team may seem like a daunting task, especially for the owner of a very small or family-centered company. However, FSIS strongly encourages companies to have more than one person working on the development of HACCP system(s). This is because HACCP system development is one of those tasks that are probably better done by more than one person, even in a very small company. HACCP is an overall process control system and we believe it takes a variety of different kinds of knowledge and experience to develop a good system. If your company has only a few people in it, they may all need to be on the HACCP team, because they all probably have multiple roles and responsibilities in the company's operations You should consider including on your HACCP team, some resources which may be outside your company. You may be able to get help from a trade association or from a local college, university or extension office which has people in it who know about HACCP process control systems. It is possible that companies which supply or receive your products and have already implemented HACCP may be interested in and willing to provide assistance. FSis has offered technical assistance workshops to groups of plants that came together to a central location and worked through the process of system development in small steps One resource you must include is an individual who has been trained in HACCP in accordance with the requirements of Sec. 417.7. These requirements are that the individual has successfully completed a course in applying the seven principles of hACCP to meat or poultry product processing, the course needs to have included a segment on HACCP plan development for a specific product and a segment on record review. This HACCP-trained individual does notGuidebook make sure they achieve compliance. This Guidebook has been revised to make it easier for users to relate its practical advice with the need to be in compliance with regulatory requirements. Preliminary Steps FSIS and most HACCP experts believe that a company will do a better job of HACCP plan development if it takes some preliminary steps before it attempts to apply the seven principles and write a plan. FSIS believes that a company should take the following steps to get started: 1. Assemble the HACCP team, including one person (consultant, employee, or other resource) who is HACCP-trained. 2. Describe the food and its method of production and distribution; identify the intended use and consumers of the products. 3. Develop and verify process flow diagram(s). 4. Decide whether products can be grouped using the process categories in 417.2(b)(1). The first part of this Guidebook discusses how companies, especially small or very small companies, can go about taking these preliminary steps. Numbers 2-4 are parts of the regulatory requirements in §417.2(a). 1. Assemble the HACCP team, including one person who is HACCP-trained. Assembling a HACCP team may seem like a daunting task, especially for the owner of a very small or family-centered company. However, FSIS strongly encourages companies to have more than one person working on the development of HACCP system(s). This is because HACCP system development is one of those tasks that are probably better done by more than one person, even in a very small company. HACCP is an overall process control system and we believe it takes a variety of different kinds of knowledge and experience to develop a good system. If your company has only a few people in it, they may all need to be on the HACCP team, because they all probably have multiple roles and responsibilities in the company’s operations. You should consider including on your HACCP team, some resources which may be outside your company. You may be able to get help from a trade association or from a local college, university or extension office which has people in it who know about HACCP process control systems. It is possible that companies which supply or receive your products and have already implemented HACCP may be interested in and willing to provide assistance. FSIS has offered technical assistance workshops to groups of plants that came together to a central location and worked through the process of system development in small steps. One resource you must include is an individual who has been trained in HACCP in accordance with the requirements of Sec. 417.7. These requirements are that the individual has successfully completed a course in applying the seven principles of HACCP to meat or poultry product processing; the course needs to have included a segment on HACCP plan development for a specific product and a segment on record review. This HACCP-trained individual does not 5