A new grouping of the five sector skills councils (SSCs) in the food and drink industry is to set down guidelines for meeting new European Union (EU) hygiene rules.
According to Jack Matthews, chief executive of the food and drink SSC, Improve, the industry needs help implementing hazard analysis and critical control point (HACCP) systems as different sectors and regulatory bodies have different takes on the legislation, due to be introduced in January next year.
"The interpretations will be different, particularly if you look at what the Food Standards Agency's views are, the Health & Safety Executive's views and environmental health's views," he said.
Matthews said that the new Food Chain Skills Group, set up to address the skills needs of the entire supply chain, would map HACCP requirements for farmers to retailers and identify minimum standards. It would then create a single framework of HACCP guidelines for all.
"It will say to companies, if you apply these skills programmes to your staff you will be covered, no matter what the interpretation is of the HACCP principle," said Matthews. "We think that's a real boon to employers. For the first time across the entire food chain you can have a skills approach which is common and which meets all of the basic demands, no matter what the role is in the preparation and handling of food."
He hoped the guidelines would be published by the end of the summer to give companies a chance to put systems into place before January 1, 2006.
The Food Chain Skills Group is a collaboration between sector skills councils for environmental and land-based industries, freight and logistics, food and drink, retail and the hospitality, leisure, travel and tourism sectors. It will meet quarterly and take a "farm to fork" approach to skills issues.