The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

1. Module 3.1 The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

2. Introduce trainees to the importance of identifying and controlling food safety hazards in primary production with specific reference to the coffee chain To identify steps in the primary production of coffee where control can prevent food safety hazards To establish the role of government and the importance of Codex Alimentarius in the control of contaminants and other undesirable substances in foods Objectives Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

3. Scope, outline and objectives of Section III of Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene, ‘Primary Production’ Application of food hygiene principles to the primary production of coffee Regulatory guidelines and measures to promote safe primary production Content Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

4. Dry or wet processing of coffee Growing Harvesting Transport to location for further processing Steps being covered in this presentation Section III – Primary production • Codex definition of primary production: ‘...those steps in the food chain up to and including, for example, harvesting, slaughter, milking, fishing.’ Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

5. Section III – Primary production • Objective of Section III • Primary production should be managed in a way that ensures that food is safe and suitable for its intended use • Identify steps in the primary production where food safety hazards could be introduced. Emphasise controls at points most at risk Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

6. Outline of Section III Codex GPFH – Primary Production • 3.1 - Environmental hygiene • 3.2 - Hygienic production of food sources • 3.3 - Handling, storage and transport • 3.4 - Cleaning, maintenance and personal hygiene at primary production Remember it is a general code and certain provisions may not be relevant in any given situation Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

7. Environmental hygiene • Food production should not be carried out in areas where the presence of potentially harmful substances would lead to an unacceptable level of such substances in food • CAC/RCP 49-2001 deals with environmental chemical contamination • Emphasises avoidance of contaminated areas and measures to control environmental pollution Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

8. Environmental hygiene • Environmental contaminants that could potentially become food-borne hazards • Heavy metals in soil, naturally present or through environmental degradation, can be assimilated into plant tissues (arsenic, cadmium, lead, mercury, etc) • A 1996 survey in France showed no unacceptable levels of heavy metals in coffee • No reported problems of other environmental contaminants, such as persistent organohalogens, in coffee Moulds producing OTA are widely distributed and cannot be avoided but we can avoid practices that increase likelihood of contamination... Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

9. Hygienic production of food sources • Includes identifying points in primary production activities where a high probability of contamination exists and taking specific measures to minimise that probability • Codex Code of Practice for the reduction of mycotoxin contamination in cereals provides further useful guidance in building prevention programmes for coffee, covering • Planting, pre-harvest, harvest, storage, transport • Incorporation of HACCP principles Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

10. Open coffee field Coffee intercropped with banana Coffee and groundnut Coffee grown under permanent shade Growing coffee (cropping systems) Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

11. Coffee intercropped with pepper Growing coffee (cropping systems) • No relation has been established between contamination and cropping systems • Such relations are difficult to establish due to the large number of variables and degree of natural variation Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

12. Drop system fertilisation and irrigation Weeding Mulching Spraying Farm management practices Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

13. Agricultural practices in OTA reduction programmes • The farm survey did not reveal any significant correlation between contamination and • Inter cropping • Fertilizer or other soil treatments • Weed management practices • The global project focussed mostly on post-production practices in the control of OTA contamination • Correlations with production practices may exist. This can be the subject of future research. Capacity building activities within the global project allow national centres to continue applied research components of their coffee development programmes Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

14. Agricultural practices in OTA reduction programmes • Effective pest management may play a role in OTA prevention • Preliminary evidence that CBB can spread OTA-OTA producing fungi • Further investigations are being conducted • Preliminary work has shown higher levels of OTA contamination in out-sorted CBB damaged beans than in sound beans from the same batch Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

15. Pest management • Good practices in the control of CBB can also help prevent OTA contamination • Trapping • Biological control with parasitoids and fungi • Spraying • Removal and sanitary disposal of fallen cherries Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

16. By-products from processing: Pulp and Husk Good medium and source of spores Agricultural practices in OTA reduction programmes ‘Elimination of fungal vectors in the vicinity of crop’ • Only use well composted pulp for mulching and manuring - including earthworms gives a superior compost • Remove by-products from processing / drying areas • Assure run-off from processing does not create a pollution problem Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

17. Composting in a pit Use of worms in composting Agricultural practices in OTA reduction programmes ‘Elimination of fungal vectors in the vicinity of crop’ Further work completed to investigate impact of composting procedures on propagation of OTA-producing mould Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

18. Good practices in coffee production Some indications regarding stage of maturity OTA content in samples after 12 days of drying (Uganda, July 2002) Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

19. Maturity at harvest: quality and safety implications Some indications regarding stage of maturity • From a ‘coffee quality’ perspective, the use of immature cherries should be avoided • Removal of over-ripe cherries during sorting might be useful OTA-prevention measure • Avoid harvesting of cherries from the soil • ‘Tree dried’ cherries in arid zones do not appear to increase risk Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

20. Selective picking Use of harvesting mats Maturity at harvest: quality and safety implications • Use picking mats • To avoid collection of old cherries from the ground • To reduce contamination with soil • Sweep ground to remove old fallen cherry before harvesting • Select cherries at optimal stage of maturity • Sort out and dispose of unsound fruit Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

21. Winnowing of fallen cherries X Impact of harvesting practices Cherries harvested from the ground can be highly contaminated by OTA-producing mould Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

22. Heaping in the orchard Storage on the farm Impact of ‘storage’ of cherries ‘Common examples of BAD practice on many farms’ Delays between harvesting of cherries and drying should be kept to a minimum Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

23. Heaping in the orchard Storage on the farm Impact of ‘storage’ of cherries ‘Fresh cherries should NEVER be stored’ • Unintentional • No room for drying or processing • Lack of labour for transport • Poor organisation of harvest • Reasons often given for fresh cherry storage • Drying is faster • Easier to pulp and to ferment Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

24. Cleaning, maintenance and personnel hygiene at primary production • Any necessary cleaning and maintenance is carried out effectively • Clean bags for the transport of fresh cherries (avoid bags used previously to transport dry cherries or husks) • Elimination of fungal vectors in the vicinity Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

25. Role of government • Provide guidance to primary producers • Direct training • Preparation of risk-based guidelines • Development and dissemination of educational materials Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

26. Role of government • To establish regulatory and control programmes • Coffee quality and safety standards and codes of practice • Regulations concerning distribution and use of pesticides and other chemicals in coffee production • Regulations to ensure compliance with required standards and practices • Financial and human resources to effectively implement regulations • Monitoring and surveillance programmes for proactive control Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

27. Growing of coffee Harvesting of coffee Transport to place of further processing Pulping Drying Wet processing Dry processing Summary • Guided by Codex GPFH we have identified points in primary production of coffee where hazards might be introduced • We have identified means of controlling the food safety hazards • We have considered government’s role is ensuring that safe coffee is produced Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production

28. Next steps… • Reflect, discuss, ask questions... • Next module - Establishment: design and facilities Module 3.1 – The Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene – Primary Production