FOOD SAFETY AND QUALITY ASSURANCE: PREREQUISITE PROGRAMMES
Diagram
GMP: Good Manufacturing Practice
The whole base: buildings, equipment, people, production control, testing, storage, and distribution.
GHP: Good Hygiene Practice
The hygiene part inside GMP: clean hands, clean surfaces, pest control, safe water, and waste handling.
GHP sits inside GMP. HACCP then builds on both.
Figure 1: GHP is the hygiene part inside the wider GMP base, and HACCP builds on both.
Introduction
GMP and GHP are often said in one breath, but they are not the same thing. GMP, Good Manufacturing Practice, is the whole base of sound factory practice: buildings, equipment, people, production control, testing, storage, and distribution, aimed at making food that is safe and consistently made to a quality fit for its intended use. GHP, Good Hygiene Practice, is the hygiene part of that base: the clean hands, clean surfaces, pest control, safe water, and waste handling that keep germs and dirt out of food. In short, GMP is the whole factory discipline, and GHP is its hygiene core.
Table 1: Quick comparison of GMP and GHP
| Aspect | GMP | GHP |
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Good Manufacturing Practice | Good Hygiene Practice |
| Focus | The whole way food is made and controlled | Hygiene only: cleanliness of people, premises, equipment, and water |
| Scope | Production, testing, storage, and distribution | Handling, cleaning, personal hygiene, pest control, and waste |
| Covers | Building design, equipment care, production control, raw material checks, testing, records, warehousing | Hand washing, clean surfaces, safe water, pest control, waste removal, clean clothing |
| Where it applies | Every food factory, from receiving to dispatch | Every place food is handled, including farms, factories, shops, and kitchens |
| Relation to HACCP | HACCP builds on GMP as its base | GHP is part of GMP, and HACCP also builds on GHP |
| Failure sign | Wrong recipe, bad records, broken equipment, untested lots | Dirty hands, dirty surfaces, pests, unsafe water, waste near food |
| Main question | Is the factory run in a sound and controlled way? | Is everything that touches food clean and safe? |
Scientific explanation
Definition
GMP is the advice and guidance that outlines the parts of production and testing that can affect the quality and safety of a product. For food and drink, GMP aims at ensuring products are safe for the consumer and are consistently manufactured to a quality appropriate to their intended use. GHP is the hygiene practice inside GMP: the conditions and practices that keep food clean and free from contamination while it is handled, made, stored, and served.
Working principle
GMP works by setting the base rules for the factory: suitable buildings and equipment, trained people, written procedures, control of raw materials, process control, testing, and records. A factory that fails GMP cannot claim a higher system is working, because base faults swamp any plan built on top. GHP works by removing the routes germs and dirt take into food: washing hands, cleaning surfaces, controlling pests, using safe water, and removing waste. Clean floors and trained staff are the base, and HACCP then asks the sharper question of which step decides safety.
Apparatus
Cleaning tools, brushes, and detergents; pest control traps; thermometers for water and storage checks; and hand wash stations are the working tools of GHP. GMP adds production and testing tools, such as scales, mixers that can be taken apart and washed, and laboratory test tools.
Measurement procedure
GHP is checked by sight and by record: look at hands, surfaces, and drains; check cleaning logs; test water; and check pest control records. GMP is checked by audit against written procedures: are raw materials checked on arrival, are oven settings written and followed, and are test results filed before food is shipped.
Factors affecting readings
Results change with the food, the building, and the people. Wet foods, ready to eat foods, and foods for small children need stricter hygiene. A cracked floor that traps dirty water, a broken hand wash station, or staff who were never trained will undo a good written procedure.
Formulas and calculations
This topic has no standard formula in the books used for this article, so no worked example is given here. Do not use a made up formula for this topic.
Industrial applications
- GMP: dairy plants, bakeries, canneries, meat plants, and drink factories, where production control and testing run every day.
- GHP: food handling at every step, from farm handling and transport to factory lines, shops, and catering kitchens.
- Both: any food business that wants a HACCP plan must first have GMP and GHP in place, because HACCP builds on that base.
Advantages and limitations
GMP advantages: covers the whole factory, so faults in buildings, equipment, or records are caught, not only dirty hands. GMP limitations: it is a base, not a hazard plan: it does not by itself name the step where safety is decided.
GHP advantages: simple, daily, and cheap to start, and it stops the most common route of contamination. GHP limitations: hygiene alone cannot control a hazard that needs a cooking step or a supplier check, so it must sit inside GMP and under HACCP.
FAQ
Can a factory have GMP without GHP?
No. GHP is part of GMP, so a factory with dirty hands and unsafe water fails GMP as well.
Is GHP only for factories?
No. GHP applies wherever food is handled, including farms, shops, and kitchens.
Why does HACCP need GMP and GHP first?
Because without the base, hazards appear at every step and the plan controls nothing well. Clean premises, trained people, and safe water come first.
What is the first thing to fix in a dirty plant?
The base: water, hand washing, cleaning, and pest control. A HACCP plan written over a dirty base will not hold.
References and further reading
- FTN subject Food Quality Control and Standards, Unit 1: Introduction to Quality Control and Assurance System, section 1.5, and Unit 12: HACCP, Food Safety Management Systems, Audits and Certification.
- FTN subject Food Safety and Security, Unit 4: HACCP and Prerequisite Programmes.
- Book on disk: Institute of Food Science and Technology (UK) and Louise Manning, Food and Drink: Good Manufacturing Practice: A Guide to its Responsible Management, on disk as Food-and-Drink-GMP.
- Google Books: Food and Drink: Good Manufacturing Practice, books.google.com/books?id=KugWswD7ESQC, which gives the GMP definition used in this article.
