Why Your Bakery Needs a HACCP Plan

Food safety is a vital, but commonly overlooked area for commercial bakers. However, recently the FDA issued warning letters to food processors abroad for serious HACCP violations. Among the infractions: missing or ineffective control plans for managing histamine¹ and Clostridium botulinum in vacuum‑packed fish, resulting in adulterated products unfit for export into the U.S. market. 

These violations might be on fish, but the lessons are crystal clear for commercial bakeries: baked goods must rise to the same rigorous safety standards, especially when scaling production. Learn how bakers can ensure their HACCP plans don’t flop.

Why Bakers Should Care About Food Safety

Food safety is vital for both quality control and assurance. Here’s why it also matters for compliance:

• HACCP isn’t just for seafood. The core idea of identifying critical control points², whether it’s histamine in fish or moisture in cream fillings, applies across the board.
• FDA oversight is growing. Even overseas processors can land in hot water when they fail to document hazard control effectively.
• One lapse can be catastrophic. Just one under‑controlled control point, like allergen contamination or mold‑friendly moisture, can lead to recalls, lost contracts, and reputational damage.

Crafting a Bakery‑Focused HACCP Plan:

1. Conduct a Hazard Analysis
   • Identify biological (e.g., Salmonella, molds), chemical (e.g., cleaning chemicals), and physical (e.g., metal shards from equipment) hazards.
   • Map out risk by process area: mixing, proofing, baking, cooling, slicing, packaging.
2. Determine Critical Control Points (CCPs)
   • Example: final internal temperature during baking—that’s your CCP to kill pathogens like Listeria.
   • For items with fillings or glazes, thermometers are essential to verify adequate pasteurization or chilling.
3. Establish Critical Limits
   • Set measurable parameters like “bake at ≥ 88 °C for ≥ 10 minutes” or “cool to ≤ 4 °C within 2 hours.”
   • Don’t be crusty—make limits specific and verifiable.
4. Create Monitoring Procedures
   • Log temperatures at consistent intervals.
   • Use calibrated instruments; cross‑check during shifts.
5. Define Corrective Actions
   • If a loaf didn’t reach the critical limit? Quarantine, reprocess, or destroy.
   • Root cause? Why is it under‑baked? Oven calibration? Workflow error?
6. Verification & Record‑Keeping
   • Schedule periodic internal audits.
   • Retain logs for at least a year and is ready for FDA when they pop in.
7. Continuous Improvement
   • Update the HACCP plan when introducing new products, changing recipes, or scaling production.

Being FDA Compliant

While the FDA’s seafood alerts centered on foreign operations, domestic bakery operations face the exact same rules. The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act requires you to ensure your products are not adulterated or misbranded. A missing HACCP CCP or a vague control plan can lead to warning letters. Plus, for imported ingredients, like fruit purees or specialty flours, your supplier must also be HACCP‑compliant, or you risk contamination before the dough even starts.

Build Your Own HACCP Plan

For bakers “kneading” guidance on HACCP planning, our HACCP Plan for Bakeries BAKERpaper is a great resource. It’s baked with:

• A step‑by‑step guide on how to map hazards specific to bakery processes
• Charts that help choose CCPs tied to temperature, moisture, and cross‑contamination
• Real‑world considerations that help bakers see the bigger picture.

It’s a great way to get your HACCP plan fully proofed and audit‑ready.

Focus on Food Safety Today

The seafood industry’s HACCP violations serve as a timely wake‑up call: whether you’re shaping baguettes or bagels, food safety should never be half‑baked. Documented hazard analysis, measurable control points, diligent monitoring, and swift corrective action are the yeast you need for compliance. Plus, our HACCP Plan for Bakeries BAKERpaper can help deliver the technical recipe to guide you from a messy draft to a market‑ready HACCP success. 

Download the BAKERpaper today!

Download the BAKERpaper now!

References

1. “Fish and Fishery Products Hazards and Controls Guidance.” U.S. Food and Drug Administration, FDA, www.fda.gov/files/food/published/Fish-and-Fishery-Products-Hazards-and-Controls-Guidance-Chapter-7-Download.pdf. Accessed 19 June 2025.
2. “HACCP Principles & Application Guidelines.” U.S. Food and Drug Administration, FDA, www.fda.gov/food/hazard-analysis-critical-control-point-haccp/haccp-principles-application-guidelines. Accessed 19 June 2025.

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