Food Defense Plans
Food Defense Plans may soon be required by Congress if H.R. 2749 is passed. Food defense is not the same as food safety. Food defense focuses on protecting the food supply from intentional contamination by criminals or terrorists, using a variety of chemicals, biological agents or other harmful substances. These agents could include materials that are not naturally-occurring or are not routinely tested for. According to the Food Safety and Inspection Services (FSIS), an attacker’s goal might be to kill people or disrupt our economy. Intentional acts are generally not reasonable and are hard to predict.
BPS will help you meet short term goals of your Food Defense Plan preparation as well as support you through the entire lifecycle of Food Defense Plan implementation. Partnering with BPS provides you with the expertise that comes with more than twenty years of security management experience. With our assistance, the development process for the required Food Defense Plan will provide:
- Technical physical security expertise to satisfy demanding and time consuming Food Defense Plan expectations
- Common sense solutions to comply with the proposed regulation consistent with industry best practices of the FSIS, FDA and American Institute of Bakers (AIB)
- A cost estimate with several options for compliance activities
Food Defense Plan – Key Challenges
There are key challenges in Food Defense Plans implementation that BPS will overcome for you
- Cost of implementation – we will minimize the cost
- Food Defense Plan implementation may consume more than 200 hours when using plan estimates from comparable industries – our 20 years of chemical and security consulting experience will simplify this complex process
- A comprehensive Food Defense Plan requires a focus on perimeter security, inside, processing, storage, shipping, receiving, mail handling, personnel and utilities security
- Your Hazard Analysis & Critical Control Points (HACCP) may inform a Food Defense Plan but cannot be a substitute
- How do you measure up to the Food Defense Plan expectations is some of the public models available on the Internet? BPS will conduct an initial gap analysis using a variety of benchmarking tools
- Your site security officer (SSO) may not be a security expert – how will s / he be able to complete the Food Defense Plan preparation process? BPS can train your SSO or provide expert assistance in developing your Food Defense Plan
- There are many types of companies offering services. Which type is best for you?
A Food Defense Plan helps you identify steps you can take to minimize the risk that food products in your establishment will be intentionally contaminated or tampered with. A plan increases preparedness. Although the plan should be in place at all times, it may be particularly helpful during emergencies.
Food Defense Plan Preparation Implementation Made Easy
The implementation of a Food Defense Plan has never been easier. Contact BPS today to determine how we can work together to develop your Food Defense Plan. (585) 394-5112 x11