Checklist

HACCP Quick-Start Checklist

An interactive, guided checklist to implement a basic HACCP structure for a small-to-medium kitchen. Walks a team through assembling roles, mapping flow, identifying CCPs, setting limits, defining monitoring and corrective actions, scheduling verification, and preparing records. Saves responses so the team can track progress and return to incomplete steps.

Interactive Tool

HACCP Quick-Start Checklist

Use this checklist to guide your team through a practical, defensible HACCP plan. Each step collects a brief confirmation, an owner, and notes so you can track progress and finish the plan. This is designed for small-to-medium kitchens; adapt the fields to match your operations. Completing the checklist does not replace professional food safety advice where required.

Give this plan a clear name (e.g., 'Main Kitchen - Downtown Cafe').
A small team should include someone from kitchen operations, a manager, and food safety/sanitation if available.
List names and roles (e.g., Jane Doe — Kitchen Manager; Sam Lee — Head Chef).
Map steps from receiving through storage, prep, cook, hold, service, and disposal. A simple sketch is fine as a start.
Provide a file name, shared drive path, or URL so others can find it.
Consider biological, chemical, and physical hazards at each step in the flow diagram.
List the most significant hazards and the step where they can occur.
For each hazard, determine whether control is preventive and critical (justify why it is a CCP).
Example: 'Cooking step — CCP for eliminating pathogens; time/temperature control required.'
Critical limits should be measurable (e.g., temperature, time, pH).
Provide numeric limits or reference to the policy (e.g., 'Cook to 165°F (74°C) for 15s').
Monitoring should specify who, how, what tool, and how often checks occur.
Example: 'Server measures holding temp with probe every hour; records in log.'
Choose the best-fit frequency; adjust for each CCP as needed.
Corrective actions must specify immediate steps, disposition of product, and who documents the action.
Example: 'If holding temp below limit, discard affected product and retrain staff; record incident.'
Verification includes calibration, audits, review of records, and testing where appropriate.
Describe verification checks (e.g., weekly supervisor review, monthly internal audit).
Templates should capture date, time, item, measurement, result, person, and corrective action if any.
Provide a storage location so records can be found during inspection or review.
Name and title (e.g., 'Maria Gomez — General Manager').
Use YYYY-MM-DD or a short phrase (e.g., 'Q2 2026').
Quick team assessment of how complete and defensible the plan feels.
Capture follow-ups, gaps to address, training needs, or equipment to acquire.
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