HACCP is an international standard defining the requirements for effective control of food safety
The locally based diversified grains processor Capwell Industries limited is among the very few in the food industry to achieve the highly coveted HACCP food safety management systems certification from the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KeBS).
The achievement makes Capwell Industries amongst the few companies in Kenya and the Eastern African region with a Food Safety Management System (FSMS).
It also makes the company the only HACCP certified company in the processing of rice and pulses in Kenya and the region.
HACCP, which stands for Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points, is an international standard defining the requirements for effective control of food safety.
Globally, any organization dealing in food products that has the HACCP certification mark is highly regarded.
Capwell Industries’ CEO Mr Rajan Shah said that this is because the HACCP certification instantly demonstrates to customer’s distinct commitment in safe & quality food products.
“HACCP is a preventative food safety management system in which every step in manufacturing, storage and distribution of products is analyzed for physical, chemical and microbial hazards in line with our company goals to exceed our customers’ expectations in supply of quality and safe products” says Mr Shah.
Mr Shah noted that the “attainment of the HACCP certification increases our consumer’s confidence in our processes and products and also improves our prospect of trading both regionally and internationally.”
For Capwell Industries, the decision to seek HACCP certification was in response to demand for quality and safe products from our consumers, which had come in line with exponential growth of its business.
“This was therefore the right time to achieve the certification,” says Mr Shah.
According to the CEO, the company has already started to reap the benefits of the certification during the implementation.
This involved a well-known and internationally accredited training body on HACCP standards that built the capacity of the company’s own staff, who then became consultants and drove the whole process all the way to certification.
“Customer complaints have decreased significantly and efficiency improved significantly, with more efficiency expected as the food safety management system matures,” the CEO reveals on the benefits so far achieved by the company.
But even with this major achievement, Capwell is not about to rest.
“The plan going forward is to upgrade our food safety management system to the ISO 22000 standard, using the same model employed in the HACCP certification,” says the CEO.