The Performance Measurement of HACCP Systems - The Canadian Quality Management Program Strategy

摘要

The utilization of HACCP systems has been accepted over the past decade as the international standard for the control of food safety hazards. The ability to demonstrate the effectiveness of HACCP-based systems to buyers both nationally and internationally is extremely important to establish and maintain market and consumer confidence. This paper presents a modern strategy to measure the performance of the HACCP-based Quality Management Program (QMP) for the Canadian fish processing industry. The QMP,mandatory in Canada since 1992, first utilized a traditional rating system (Excellent, Good, Satisfactory, Fail) and extensive product sampling. The incorporation of quality system principles into the QMP in 1999 allowed the CFIA to explore the use of performance indicators to support program management as well as internal and external performance reporting. In a recent pilot project, the CFIA tested a performance measurement framework using the QMP: the pilot findings are discussed in this paper. Performance reporting was focused in two areas that are of primary importance to a regulatory agency -"Service Delivery" and "Results". In general, service delivery indicators reflect quantity, quality, timeliness or cost of regulatory services delivered. Two indicators of service delivery were initiated; Compliance Verification Delivery Rate and Enforcement Profile. Results indicators are identified to reflect the food safety contribution from the regulatory activities delivered. Five indicators of results were piloted; Domestic Incident Count, Export Incident Count, Product Compliance Rate (Export), Facility Conformity Rate and Industry Compliance Rate. When examined individually these indicators can provide useful data for trend analysis and decision-making. In combination, performance indicators are a powerful management and reporting solution for a science-based regulatory agency. Together, a performance measurement framework and HACCP can provide a comprehensive and defensible summary to attestto food safety assurance for the Canadian public and international trading partners.