HACCP: Principle 5 - Establish Corrective Actions

Where there is a deviation from established critical limits, corrective actions are necessary. An important purpose of corrective actions is to prevent foods which may be hazardous from reaching customers. Therefore, corrective actions should include the following elements: 1) determine and correct the cause of non-compliance; b) determine the disposition of non-compliant product; and c) record the corrective actions that have been taken. Specific corrective actions should be developed in advance for each CCP and included in the HACCP plan. As a minimum, the HACCP plan should specify what is done when a deviation occurs, who is responsible for implementing the corrective actions, and that a record will be developed and maintained of the actions taken.

Other Documents in the Series

Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP)
HACCP: Principle 1 - Conduct a Hazard Analysis
HACCP: Principle 2 - Determine Critical Control Points (CCPs)
HACCP: Principle 3 - Establish Critical Limits
HACCP: Principle 4 - Establish Monitoring Procedures
HACCP: Principle 5 - Establish Corrective Actions - Current Document
HACCP: Principle 6 - Establish Verification Procedures
HACCP: Principle 7 - Establish Record Keeping and Documentation Procedures

For more information about the content of this document, contact Daryl Loback or Food Safety Division.
This information published to the web on June 17, 2002.
Last Reviewed/Revised on July 30, 2008.