TAMU Offers Online Course on Food Safety Plan Course

FDA’s Current Good Manufacturing Practice, Hazard Analysis, and Risk-Based Preventive Controls for Food for Animals rule published in September 2015 contains regulatory guidance for the application of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). To equip feed manufacturers and distributors with the skills necessary to develop a Food Safety plan in conformance with FSMA rules, Texas A&M University’s Department of Soil & Crop Sciences, in partnership with the Office of the Texas State Chemist, offers an eight-week online course on the application of HACCP principles and prerequisite programs that align with FSMA regulations. The course, Application of HACCP Principles to Build A FSMA Food Safety Plan, will be offered from June 12 – August 4, 2017.

The course incorporates the standardized curriculum recognized by the FDA as adequate for the application of risk-based preventive controls, and is being led by an International HACCP Alliance and Food Safety Preventive Controls Alliance lead instructor. Course content is presented in a practical context that enables participants to navigate an increasingly complex and heavily regulated business environment. The mix of lectures, readings, and course homework assignments that culminate in the development of a food safety plan has drawn high praise from past course participants.   

The first step toward adoption of hazard analysis and preventive control principles involves the formation of a food safety team comprised of qualified employees. In this course, we use a team environment to help students apply a science-based approach to identify and manage hazards in feed ingredients and finished feed through pre-requisite programs and the development of a written food safety plan to protect animal and human health.

Participants receive the course text, HACCP: A Systematic Approach to Food Safety and access to an interactive course Web site. An electronic copy of the Preventive Controls for Animal Food participant manual developed by the Food Safety Preventive Controls Alliance will be accessible to students online. Students completing course assignments earn a Texas A&M University Certificate of Completion with an International HACCP Alliance seal, and members of the American Registry of Professional Animal Scientists are eligible to earn 8 continuing education units. The Certificate of Completion denotes that the recipient has fulfilled the requirements to be considered a Preventive Controls Qualified Individual. The course may be taken for graduate credit by students enrolled in the Texas A&M Regulatory Science program.

The course enables participants to:

• Become a Preventive Control Qualified Individual
• Practice HACCP team management and Food Safety plan development skills
• Learn from Texas A&M University Regulatory Science in Food Systems graduate program faculty members and experienced regulators
• Earn a Certificate of Completion from Texas A&M University
• Participate in a program accredited by the International HACCP Alliance

The course is $500 per participant (includes textbook & materials). For more information and registration, visit www.feedhaccp.org or TAMU Marketplace.