Development of a Risk Model to Determine an Appropriate Level of Due Diligence Testing for Raw Material and Final Product Authenticity

<p>Risk Assessment is widely used by the food industry. Although it may work well for microbiological hazards, many sectors of the food industry do not understand the concept of risk in relation to other hazards such as chemical hazards or allergen management. In addition to requirements to perform risk assessment defined by industry and legislative standards, it could be a useful tool to help companies develop testing schedules as part of their quality assurance schemes. Analytical testing of products or raw materials is an expensive part of a company's QA scheme. The requirement to include checks for raw material and product authenticity has become important. A systematic approach using a risk model could be used to estimate the amount of testing required based on knowledge gleaned from food safety management, TACCP, horizon scanning or gap analysis exercises. This project will review risk assessment practices used by other industries, and use this knowledge to produce a new Guideline document or update Guideline 65 ('Risk Assessment and Management of Raw Materials').Guideline documentation will include suitable guidance for companies to allow them to develop testing schemes based on HACCP, TACCP, horizon scanning, gap analysis or legislative requirements.</p>