Peanut Butter Hazard Analysis Example

Considering the steps of receiving raw peanuts through the process of mixing of ingredients, we recognize four potential hazards in receiving – one biological, two chemical, and one physical. 

The potential biological hazard is Salmonella bacteria. 

How do we know this? The scientific literature shows that raw peanuts have had a history of contamination with Salmonella. Many crops grown in the ground have the potential for contamination from the environment or harvesting. 

Does Salmonella require a preventive control? Again, when we consider research into the likelihood that people who consume the bacteria will get sick, we decide that a preventative control is necessary. Next, we document the justification in saying Salmonella is a hazard and requires control.

HAZARD ANALYSIS		PRODUCT: Peanut Butter				PAGE ______OF _____
PLANT NAME:						ISSUE DATE
ADDRESS:						SUPERSEDES
Ingredient or processing step	Hazard	Preventive Control required?		Justify decision	Preventive Controls	Applied at this step?
		Yes	No			Yes	No
Receiving packaging – jars and lids	B – None
	C – None
	P – None
Receiving packaging – labels	B – None
	C – Undeclared allergen (peanut)	X		Product contains peanut as an ingredient	Allergen control – Label review upon receipt for correct allergen information	X
	P – None
Receiving non-peanut ingredients – salt, sugar, oil	B – None
	C – None
	P – None
Receiving raw peanuts	B – Non-sporeforming pathogens such as Salmonella	X		Raw peanuts have a history of contamination with vegetative pathogens from the environment of harvesting	Process control – Subsequent roasting destroys Salmonella		X
	C – Aflatoxin	X		Aflatoxin may be present due to growth of Aspergillus flavus during growth, harvesting or storage	Supply-chain control – Verification of supplier Certificate of Analysis	X
	C – Unapproved pesticide		X	Unapproved pesticides may be present in imported peanuts but are less likely in domestically sourced peanuts. Domestic peanuts are used.
	P – Foreign material e.g., wood, metal, plastic, stones		X	Grinding and milling would reduce the size to a non-hazardous nature. Supplier controls these to prevent adulteration and potential equipment damage.

Then, we determine that the process control of roasting could be used to reduce Salmonella to safe levels, but that action would be implemented at a later step.

HAZARD ANALYSIS		PRODUCT: Peanut butter				PAGE _______ OF ________
PLANT NAME:						ISSUE DATE
ADDRESS:						SUPERSEDES
Ingredient or processing step	Hazard	Preventive Control required?		Justify decision	Preventive controls	Applied at this step?
		Yes	No			Yes	No
Packaging Storage	B – None
	C – None
	P – None
Non-peanut ingredient storage	B – None
	C – None
	P – None
Raw peanut storage	B – None
	C – Aflatoxin		X	The dry conditions and short storage time prevents production of aflatoxin
	P – None

Now let’s look at that roasting step. We see two potential hazards: the biological Salmonella hazard and a physical hazard of foreign materials. Salmonella does require a preventive control because the bacteria may pose a significant health risk. This is a process control step since the thermal treatment destroys Salmonella. We decide that foreign material does not require a preventive control because we have data from metal detectors that metal rarely shows up in the roasting process. We justify the decision by pointing to preventive maintenance.

Hazard Analysis – Peanut Butter Example (continued)

HAZARD ANAYLSIS		PRODUCT: Peanut butter				PAGE _____ OF _______
PLANT NAME:						ISSUE DATE _______
ADDRESS:						SUPERSEDES ________
Ingredient or processing step	Hazard	Preventive control required?		Justify decision	Preventive controls	Applied at this step?
		Yes	No			Yes	No
Raw peanut cleaning	B – Environmental pathogens such as Salmonella	X		Raw peanuts may contain Salmonella that can contaminate the environment	Sanitation control – Implement hygienic zoning to contain potential Salmonella in this pre-roast area	X
	C – None
	P – Foreign material e.g., wood, metal, plastic, stones		X	Data from subsequent metal detection demonstrates that metal fragments originating from roasting are rare due in part to preventive maintenance
Roasting	B – Non-sporeforming pathogens such as Salmonella	X		Non-sporeforming pathogens may be present in the raw peanuts	Process control – Roasting step destroys Salmonella by thermal treatment	X
	C – None
	P – Foreign material – metal		X	Data from subsequent metal detection demonstrates that metal fragments originating from roasting are rare due in part to preventive maintenance
Cooling	B – Environmental pathogens such as Salmonella	X		Salmonella harbored in the environment could contaminate exposed product	Sanitation control – Zoning and dry cleaning procedures	X
	C – None
	P – None
Grinding	B – Environmental pathogens such as Salmonella	X		Salmonella harbored in the environment could contaminate exposed product	Sanitation control – Zoning and dry cleaning procedures	X
	C
	P – Foreign material – metal	X		Metal fragments could be generated during the grinding process	Process control – Metal detection at a later step		X
Mixing all ingredients	B – Environmental pathogens such as Salmonella	X		Salmonella harbored in the environment could contaminate exposed product	Sanitation control – Zoning and dry cleaning procedures	X
	C – None
	P – Foreign material – metal	X		Metal fragments could be generated during the mixing process. Preventive maintenance reduces this occurrence	Process control – Metal detection at a later step		X

Studying the other steps in this example will give you a good feel for what is effective for a hazard analysis. It will take some experience and use of resources to become proficient at identifying hazards, preventive controls, and justifications.