OCCP Successes
This method is working for a wide range of companies from small
farms to large, multi-site co-packers and OCCPs, like control points
in a HACCP plan, are reducing risk and systematizing procedures.
Properly implemented OCCPs can help you avoid continuously facing regulatory compliance hassles with your certifier, your customers, and even your vendors.
“P“Properly implemented OCCPs can help you
avoid continuously facing regulatory
compliance hassles.”
For example, Wizard’s Cauldron is currently updating their OSP
in order to further tighten their quality assurance program. As the
largest custom processor of certified organic salad dressings and
sauces in the United States, Wizard’s Cauldron maintains organic
compliance procedures for several production lines, a complex
inventory of organic raw ingredients from numerous suppliers, and
hundreds of finished product formulations that must match the
product labels they maintain for their clients.
Wizard’s Cauldron is
growing rapidly and hiring
new staff to meet the
increasing demand for
their products.
Cecilia Redding, CEO of
Wizard’s Cauldron said,
“Having a robust, integrated OSP with working
OCCPs in place, together
with the training modules
to support our OSP is a
crucial part of our strategic
plan to better serve our
customers.”
OCCPs can also provide
unforeseen guidance to
companies that are adding
organic lines.
“Having worked in our
facility for years and being
more than familiar with
HACCP, I was surprised to
find there could be even
more critical control points
specifically geared toward
organic production,” said
Jay Campagna, director of quality at
Garden Fresh Salsa.
“Organic CCP issues such as the
co-mingling of organic and non-organic ingredients and the use of
prohibited processing aids affect the
facility overall, not just an individual
person in a specific job,” he said.
“We’ve learned to take a second
and third look at the production
process using OCCPs. For instance,
we’ve replaced a food-grade valve
lubricant with a certified organic
lubricant in an effort to make sure
anything that may come into contact
with our organic salsas meet our
OCCP specs.”
Ensuring the Best Results from
OCCPs
Even after your OSP and OCCPs
are in place, they should be reviewed
periodically and updated when you
make changes to your operation such
EXAMPLE OF AN ORGANIC CRITICAL CONTROL POINT.
OCCP 1 – Confirmation of the organic status of raw ingredients.
Facility must have on file a current organic certificate and product list from each ingredient
supplier for every organic ingredient being received. The certificate must confirm certification to the USDA NOP. Incoming raw ingredients are quarantined and not accepted into live
inventory until this condition is met.
© Wolf, DiMatteo + Associates 2007. For license and use by authorized clients.
ORGANIC CRITICAL CONTROL POINTS (OCCPs)
1. Confirmation of organic status– 4. No contamination with prohibited
organic certificates pesticides
2. Identity Preservation (IP) – Lot # 5. Proper segregation and protection
tracking and recording during storage
3. No co-mingling with non-organic 6. No contamination during transport
ingredients
