Summary
The Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points System (HACCP) has proven to be very useful in ensuring food safety, so its implementation is a key objective of the Cuban Ministry of Tourism to guarantee the commercialization of the installations. Hence the need to carry out this project, which has been carried out for 8 years in hotels and facilities in the Varadero tourist center. In this work, the results of a recently conducted study are presented, for which the objective of the research was defined: To implement the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points System in this restaurant. To carry out the research, a review of the System's prerequisites was carried out through the HACCP Verification Manual, Good Food Handling Practices were evaluated, the Sanitary Profile was established, and compliance with the Cleaning Programs was assessed. and Disinfection, Solid and Liquid Waste Management, Pest Control, Drinking Water Treatment, Personnel Training and Maintenance of facilities, equipment and utensils. The implementation of the System was established for the dishes offered in the Menu Menu, grouping them according to the fundamental raw materials.
Summary
The System of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) has shown that is very useful to insure the Administration of innocuous foods, that´s why the main goal of the Ministry of Tourism of Cuba is to put it into practice to guarantee the trade of its product. This project has been developed in hotels and other institutions for 8 years. This research shows the results obtained in recent studies and its main goal is: To implement the System of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points in one restaurant. In order to carry out this research the pre requirements of the System were revised and through Manual of the HACCP, the Good Practices in the Manipulation of Foods were evaluated, the Sanitary Profile settled down, the execution of the Programs was valued of: Cleaning and Disinfection, Handling Solid and Liquid Residuals,Plagues Control, Maintenance of equipments and utensils as well as the Personnel qualification were checked. The implementation of the System was established for the dishes in the Letter Menu, grouping them according to the main matters.
Introduction
The Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points System (HACCP) has proven to be very useful in ensuring food safety, making its implementation a key objective of the Ministry of Tourism of Cuba to guarantee the commercialization of the installations.
Since 1996, studies related to the application of the system have been carried out in the country with a view to recognizing the weaknesses in the tourism sector that make it impossible to guarantee food safety. In Varadero they began to be carried out in 1998, highlighting the works in: "Fuerteventura" Restaurant of the Meliá Varadero Hotel (Martell, 2005), Main Restaurant or Buffet "Gran Plaza Hicacos ¨ (García, 2007) and" Caribe Restaurant of the Sandals Hotel Royal Hicacos Resort & SPA (Sosa, 2008), Design and implementation of the System in hotels and facilities in the Varadero tourist center (Martell et al, 2004 - 2011).These studies have included the diagnosis of the fulfillment of the prerequisites necessary for the implementation of the system in order to obtain the Sanitary License and the application of its basic principles.
The carrying out of this study is of vital importance for this hotel, due to the feasibility demonstrated in the application of the HACCP system in Food and Beverage areas to guarantee food safety, the permanence of deficiencies in hygienic quality during handling in the restaurant under study and the lack of a safety system that guarantees it. That is why the general objective of this research is defined: Implement the Hazard Analysis System and Critical Control Points in this hotel restaurant.
The implementation of this System would allow to gain the trust of the Tour Operators and consequently of their clients and to improve the positioning of the hotel on an international scale.
Development
The work methodology used, which was created taking into account the basic health guidelines that hotels and restaurants must comply with, based on the MINSAP-MINTUR Agreement (2003) to comply with the first and second stages of work, where the Good Food Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and basic principles of the HACCP System were applied to the selected dishes and linked to the methodology proposed by Romero (2001), making the appropriate adaptations and incorporations to lay the foundations for the application of the system. The methodology followed is presented in the following scheme:
Implementation of the HACCP System in a Restaurant of a Hotel in Varadero.
Initial stage of work.
At this stage, compliance with good manufacturing practices was evaluated:
Review of the Prerequisites for the implementation of the System:
Aspect / Compliance (%)
BMP plan: 66.6
Cleaning and Disinfection Program: 71.4
Pest Control Program: 85.7
Solid and Liquid Waste Management Program: 100
Personal Training Program: 66.7
Water Treatment Program: 75
Equipment and Maintenance: 80
Supplier Control Program: 75
Global compliance: 77.5
As can be seen there is a general fulfillment of the prerequisites that reaches 77.5%, there are still insufficiencies in some aspects that do not fully comply with the provisions, which represent 22.5%. In the programs, the execution of all the tasks is very explicit, but the objectives and policies of most of them are not defined. In the case of the Personnel Training Program, it better approaches a definition of policies and objectives, as well as that of Environmental Management, which includes the Management of Residues and pests, it is necessary that the facility works in order to review and / or o establish the corresponding policies and objectives. Regarding training, actions should be increased on topics related to safety.
Results obtained by applying the MINSAP-MINTUR Hygienic-Sanitary Inspection Guide (2008):
Health Profile Analysis
The application of the Health Profile presented an overall compliance of 67%. The aspects that showed the greatest difficulty were:
- Equipment and Utensils: Presenting 50%, essentially because there are broken kitchen equipment, there is no refrigerator in the lunch area for cold preparations, so they remain in the kitchen until their exposure on the cold table in the living room and it does not reaches 5 ° C. There is no good ventilation in the kitchen.Hygienic Processing Requirements: It reached 62.5% influencing cross contamination due to construction problems in the area that prevent compliance with the "forward" principle, with the lowest score being the aspect related to disinfection of the eggs, which is not carried out Condition of the processing area: Acquired 64%, caused by problems in ventilation (extractors and injectors), insufficient evacuation for liquid residuals when cleaning the area due to lack of drainage.Building and facilities: It obtained 69.5%, mainly due to the design and construction of the restaurant's kitchen area.
These results correspond to those observed when applying the sanitary inspection guide. Therefore, it is proposed to include the Health Profile Model as a working tool, which can be updated with a 4-month periodicity and expose it in the area so that its content is managed by all workers and thus appreciates the effect of their performance. in a more direct way.
Evaluation of the Cleaning and Disinfection Program
Evaluation of other Programs:
- Solid and Liquid Waste Management. Pest Control. Drinking Water Treatment. Personnel Training. Maintenance of facilities, equipment and utensils.
These programs and their compliance were evaluated through interviews with the personnel in charge of the activities corresponding to the different Programs, in order to know the state of compliance with them, the application of what was stated was also verified "in situ". and was compared with that recommended by Cuban Standard 143: 2010 Code of Practice - General Principles of Food Hygiene.
With the objective of knowing the degree of knowledge presented by food handlers about hygiene practices and psychosocial factors for the application of the HACCP system, a survey was applied consisting of two questionnaires. The results determined the hygiene-related aspects that manipulators presented the most difficulties, as well as the psychosocial factors that exert the greatest influence on the application of the HACCP system. It was processed by the SSPS system version 14.0 and allowed determining hygiene-related aspects that were most difficult for respondents, as well as the psychosocial factors with the greatest influence on the application of the HACCP system. From this analysis, a training program was developed for the handlers and the HACCP team.
The application of the survey on psychosocial risk factors that affect the work environment designed and validated by Martell and Acosta (2009), constitutes a novel contribution in the application of the HACCP System, favoring the evaluation of the conditions in which the internal client assumes its implementation, so that the cooking process should be directed towards the incorporation of new and better technologies, the improvement of cooperative relations of all the personnel linked to compliance with good practices, the systematic training of all workers and the involvement of managers, as collaborators of these practices, in close connection with the systematicity of the forms of control and stimulation, as ways to guarantee the effectiveness of the actions,related to compliance at work with established procedures.
The strategies proposed in conjunction with the Training Program used, contributed to the expansion of knowledge about hygiene as well as modifying habits and attitudes of the handlers and reaching significant indexes in the restaurant's safety policy.
Vendor Study Analysis
The 45 suppliers that supply food and beverages to the hotel, as well as the products they supply, were analyzed.
Physical parameters behavior.
The traceability of the food was carried out from its reception to the service, verifying compliance with the storage regulations and the recommended temperatures for its cooking.
Second Stage: Implementation of the HACCP System:
1st Phase:
a) Definition of mission and vision: The vision and mission related to the safety of the restaurant's offer of dishes were defined.
b) Design of the quality policy: The Health Quality Policy was specified in the area in question.
c) Formulation of the HACCP project: The document contemplates the objectives, policies, stages and activities of the implementation of the HACCP System.
d) Select HACCP Project Director: The head of the HACCP team was appointed, who has sufficient knowledge and experience in relation to food safety, in addition to knowing and managing the application of hazard analysis.
2nd Phase: Procedure for the implementation of the HACCP system:
Taking into account the basic principles of the system, necessary for its implementation, the tasks were carried out:
- Training and qualification of the HACCP team. Product description. Determination of the use to which it is to be put. Elaboration of a flow diagram. On-site confirmation of the flow diagram. List of all possible hazards related to each phase, execution of an analysis of dangers and study of measures to control those identified. The redesign of some processes was also taken into account. Determination of the PCCs. Establishment of a Critical Limit for each PCC. Establishment of a surveillance system for each PCC. Establishment of corrective measures. Establishment of comparison procedures. Establishment of a monitoring system. documentation and registration.
It was considered to carry out the study for the 14 dishes offered in the restaurant, based on the fundamental raw materials and complying with a fixed Menu for six days of the week.
The description of the dishes includes meat raw materials, fish and seafood, pasta, vegetables, vegetables and viands.
The identified CCPs were indicated in each process diagram, defining as such the Reception, Processing and Cooking processes, given their importance to guarantee food safety.
Example of the System Implementation for pasta (Classic Lasagna, Spinach Cannelloni).
- A methodological proposal for the application of the HACCP System was designed, adapted to the peculiarities of the restaurant under study; Its use is reproducible in other contexts with similar characteristics and with the requirements of the applicable legislation in Cuba. The application of the survey based on psychosocial factors that affect the work environment was highlighted, which constitutes a novel contribution of this project, favoring evaluate the conditions in which the workers assume the introduction and implementation of this System. The influence of the HACCP System in the improvement of professional handling practices in the area of food processing is evaluated, being able to appreciate that the revision of the prerequisites to verify the existence and compliance with the Plans and Programs of the facility, it showed 77.5%, the diagnosis of the health status reached 77%,the Health Profile showed a global compliance of 68% and the Evaluation of the L & D Program obtained a 79.6%, demonstrating that there are sanitary-hygienic problems that affect Good Food Handling Practices.It was evidenced that the description of the product and the verification of the flow diagram helped to: identify the physical, chemical and biological hazards associated in the preparation of culinary preparations, determine the Critical Control Points, demonstrating the feasibility of using this System in improving the hygienic-sanitary quality of the food produced in this restaurant.
Recommendations:
- Implement an action plan in the restaurant under study, based on the problems identified in the diagnosis. Systematize the performance of microbiological checks to determine the degree of food safety during the process, as well as process the acquisition by the Instrument hotel to carry out rapid microbiological tests. Continue training the personnel involved in the HACCP system and its importance. Use this methodological proposal for the implementation of the HACCP System in other hotel facilities, as it complies with the requirements of the applicable legislation in Cuba.
Bibliographic references:
- CODEX. Guidelines for the application of the HACCP System. Spain, 5-10p. Federation of Tour Operators (FTO). Preferred Code of Practice Food Hygiene. 2000.ISO15161. Guidelines on the Application of ISO 9001: 2001 in the Food and Beverage Industry. ISO: 22000: 2005. Food Safety Management System_ requirements for any organization in the food chain. Lantero Ma. Isabel, Conference of the course of Innocuousness. Specialized diploma "Management of Food and Beverage Services". 2009.Lantero Ma. Isabel, Interview on safety issues as an expert on the subject. Carried out, May 2011.Martell González I. Notes for a Food Science Textbook. EHT from Varadero. 2011.Martell González, I and collaborators.Design and Application of the Hazard Analysis System and Critical Control Points in hotels and facilities in the Varadero tourist center. EHT. Varadero. 2011.MINSAP. (. Epidemiological hygiene and health program in tourism. DOC-3. Guide for the sanitary evaluation of tourist facilities. Havana City, Cuba. 2008. 1-8p.MINSAP / MINTUR. Methodology for implantation in the facilities activities of the Hazard Analysis System and Critical Control Points and their recognition. Havana City, Cuba. 2003. 1-4p. NC 492: 2006 Food Storage. General Sanitary Requirements. NC 488: 2009 Cleaning and Disinfection in the food chain General procedures NC 143: 2010 Code of Practice General Principles of Food Hygiene Román, J Psycho-social Risk Factors Law No.13 (Decree No. 101 of the Executive Committee of the Council of Ministers of March 3, 1982). 2005. Romero, J. Documentation of the Safety Management System of a Food company. ASE-QUALITY. Within the framework of the Codex Alimentarius Code of Hygienic Practice. Second Edition Augmented and Corrected. Colombia. 2001.
