A little over two years ago, 3-A Sanitary Standards Inc. (3-A SSI) became aware that some companies from China were using the trademarked 3-A Symbol without authorization.

Personnel training is one of the cornerstones of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). Under the Preventive Controls rules, employee training is now mandatory for both human food and animal food manufacturers.

To the credit of FDA, a wealth of resources has been assembled to help processors develop and implement a plan to come into compliance with the Preventive Controls rules. For example, the agency created a Food Safety Plan Builder to assist owners/operators of food facilities with the development of food safety plans that are specific to their facilities and has published several guidance documents related to implementing Food Safety Modernization Act.

There is no better time for processors to make sure they have the policies, procedures and practices in place to help meet the objectives of new rules on Preventive Controls for Human Food under the Food Safety Modernization Act.

There is a new urgency to understand the fundamentals of hygienic equipment design since we addressed this subject in a column last year.

Where can food industry professionals interested in hygienic equipment design find great practical foundation knowledge? Technical educational programs offered by universities and/or related institutions account for a lot, if and where such specialized training exists.

The subject of harmonizing and aligning standards specified for food processing equipment in the United States, with design criteria intended for European equipment, can be rather complex and abstract.

What often happens to change the original state of ‘hygienic design’ in a processing system and, therefore, deserves attention when it comes to maintenance?

Hygienic design is a design process or a set of design principles to manage hazards and reduce food safety risks in food processing equipment, processes and facilities. For this article, we will concentrate solely on equipment with one very big proviso – equipment design is only one of many inter-related elements.

Writing on hygienic design for today’s readership in this industry requires a new perspective from even one or two years ago. Why so?