FAO Good Hygiene Practices along the food chain training tool

Supporting Document for Section 2, Module 4 –

Design and Facilities

Applying hygiene zones to prevent contamination

This document explains the principle of organizing a production facility into areas
in which different hygiene rules apply.

Hygiene level Raw materials reception

Wrong work flow

High

Finished Goods
& Dispatch
Administration

Medium
Correct work flow

Basic Medium Highest

Hygiene Hygiene

Food can be contaminated at many stages during a production process. One GHP method to
manage the risk of contamination is to divide a food producing facility into zones in which
different hygiene levels apply and ensuring that products flow only from levels of basic hygiene in
direction of levels of higher hygiene.
Deciding upon how to apply these zones is done by
1. Identifying process steps where products or intermediate products are easily contaminated,
for example because they are still unpacked.
2. Deciding on how to demark or enclose those rooms/areas so that strict hygiene rules can
be applied. This might require some reorganization of the flow of process.
3. Deciding on rules that need to be applied in each defined zone.

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 FAO Good Hygiene Practices along the food chain training tool
The ideal production plant would be designed in such a way that raw material would enter at
one end of the building and follow a linear path through zones of increasing hygiene before
exiting as a final product at the other end. This ideal situation would minimize cross-
contamination and should be applied to the design of new food plants. In reality, businesses
often have to make do with less than ideal buildings.
However, most processes can be (re)arranged in order to comply as much as possible with the
ideal flow of product through a plant. In addition, identification of potential cross-contamination in
the flow of material and processes and taking actions to prevent contamination will significantly
enhance the level of product safety. (Management of cross-contamination risks is discussed in a
separate supporting document).
Table 1 presents an overview of hygiene zones as well as examples of production steps,
corresponding hygiene rules, material requirements, and the potential risks associated with the
different areas of hygiene.
Not all production types require exactly 3 hygiene zones. In certain cases only 2 zones are
required whereas in others perhaps 4 might be more appropriate. What is important is to
understand and follow the principle of differentiating between process steps where contamination is
more likely to occur and defining the necessary design and corresponding behaviour to prevent
contamination from happening at these steps.

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 FAO Good Hygiene Practices along the food chain training tool

Zones and their corresponding processes and behaviour

requirement
Risk of Hygiene level (incl. access Production step Design rules
contaminating food rules)
High. highest (+ in addition to rules Final unpacked stringent (+ in
Final product is for medium risk zone) product such as addition to rules for
unprotected and, - access only with clean - yogurt prior to medium hygiene
apart from protective clothing, hair filling, zone)
packaging, will not covered, hand-washing - raw meat prior to - no wooden
undergo any (and if necessary packing, pallets, cardboard
further hazard disinfecting) upon each or other
eliminating process entry, boot dips (if - iced tea prior to unhygienic
steps. necessary) bottling. material;
- stringent controls of - air flow out of
cleaning, frequent cleaning, area (i.e. higher
disinfection prior to start of pressure inside
new process; zone);
- access only for specially
trained personnel required
for process;
High. medium Preparation of raw- no breakable
Avoid - access only for personnel materials for glass (protective
contamination of trained according to processing (heating,coverings in front
raw materials hygiene requirements; drying, fermenting, of lights,
and/or opened chopping, cutting, protective foil on
- no jewels allowed, hair etc.) glass windows);
packaging covered, protective clothing
materials. required; Storage of unpacked
- no hiding spaces
raw materials, for pests, no
- stringent controls of ingredients and cracks in walls
cleaning, frequent cleaning; opened packaging or floors,
- hand-washing according to materials. rounded corners,
personal hygiene rules effective draining;
- hand-washing
facility at entry
to zone
Low. standard No processing steps. - special
No unpacked raw - no ill personnel Areas reserved for arrangement of
materials, opened - hand-washing requirements - office work, equipment for
packaging or easy access and
after use of toilet - delivery, cleaning
unpacked final
product in this - access to anyone allowed - storage,
area. on premises - technical
- no pets treatment facilities
(heating etc.).
Table 1: 3 hygiene zones and corresponding production steps

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 FAO Good Hygiene Practices along the food chain training tool

References

Food Safety Magazine Feature, Hygienic Design of Food Processing Facilities, Frank Moerman,
October/November 2010
http://www.foodsafetymagazine.com/article.asp?id=3816&sub=sub1

Hygiene in Food Processing: Principles and Practice, H. L. M. Lelieveld et al., Woodhead

Publishing Ltd; illustrated edition (31 July 2003), ISBN-10: 1855734664

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