HACCP Compliance · Regulation (EC) No 852/2004
Your HACCP system measured point by point, with the gap turned into a costed action plan.
10 themes, a 5-level scale. And the action that moves each level to the next.
The framework’s 10 themes, already written from L1 to L5. One company, one business unit, or 300 at once.
HACCP Compliance · Regulation (EC) No 852/2004
10 themes, 5-level scale.
Nordhavn Industries
53 / 100
They measure their maturity with Datamensio
An example
This could be your situation.
Take one company as an example: three sites, three spreadsheets, no shared answer.
Nobody can consolidate.
Nordhavn Industries, 2,400 people in Hamburg, Lyon and Porto. A client asks where the group stands. Each site answers in its own spreadsheet, with its own scales.
Three weeks, a single base.
One Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 on the hygiene of foodstuffs, articles 4 and 5 assessment launched across all three sites at once, from the managers’ interview notes. The framework was already written, its 10 themes and levels L1 to L5 too.
Two costs avoided before being committed.
A score of 53 out of 100, with the gap concentrated on three themes. The AI companion spotted that two actions duplicated those of another audit. The committee report took one sentence to request.
What it saved them
- 3sites measured on the same base, instead of three questionnaires to reconcile
- 2duplicate actions caught before the spend
- 1committee report, with no manual rework
These figures are an example. They could be yours.
The standard imposes processes. Datamensio says where you stand.
01
The framework is already written
Themes, questions and levels L1 to L5, all written. You do not start from an empty spreadsheet.
02
The score lands the same day
Online, by self-assessment link or in interview. Theme by theme, comparable over time.
03
The gap becomes a costed plan
Every step up carries its action. The AI prioritises on expected effect, not on the order of the standard.
04
Progress can be demonstrated
Campaign after campaign, against your target and against your own past. That is what your board asks for.
The maturity scale
One level, the next, and the action that links the two.
It is this mechanism, one level, a higher level, and the action that links the two, that turns a finding into a trajectory.
Are corrective actions triggered by a critical limit breach recorded and tracked until the root cause is closed?
- N1
No formalised corrective action procedure. Breaches are handled verbally by the supervisor on duty, with no record kept.
- N2
A procedure exists and breaches are noted on the monitoring records, but the fate of the product and the follow-up given are not systematically logged.
- N3
Every breach is documented on a form: product affected, release or hold decision, immediate action, person responsible. Forms are reviewed periodically.
- N4
Root cause analysis is carried out for repeated breaches, corrective measures are scheduled with a deadline and their effectiveness is checked before closure.
- N5
Breach data feeds into the HACCP plan review and management indicators. Recurrences trigger a revision of the control measure or the process, with a documented history.
Action to move from L2 to L3
Replace the simple note on the monitoring record with a non-conformity form that requires four mandatory fields: batch concerned, decision on the product, immediate action, supervisor’s signature. Review open forms during the workshop’s weekly quality meeting.
« With Datamensio, we meet our objectives far more efficiently. The ERDF inspection services and our supervising ministry particularly appreciated an approach that gives them reliable data. »
Director, CCI 94CCI Île-de-France
« We believe this is the most suitable solution to scale our transformation project and measure impact according to our needs. »
Maja SucekChief Operating Officer, Interreg Danube
Rarely on its own
Frameworks combine. Put several together to cover your business, or have the AI write yours.
Take your first measurementon HACCP.
What this framework covers
Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 sets out the general hygiene rules applicable to all stages of food production, processing and distribution. Article 5 requires operators, outside primary production, to maintain permanent procedures based on the seven HACCP principles: hazard analysis, determination of critical control points, establishment of critical limits, monitoring, corrective action, verification and documentation. Annexes I and II detail the prerequisites: premises, equipment, water, waste, the cold chain, staff training. HACCP only makes sense once these prerequisites are under control.
In practice, the requirement is easy to document and hard to sustain. The same questions keep coming up. Has the hazard analysis been reviewed since the last change of recipe, supplier or production line? Are critical limits based on scientific justification, or on a figure lifted from a guide without local validation? When a limit is breached, is the corrective action recorded, the fate of the product decided, and the root cause addressed? Across a multisite group, the answer often varies from one site to another even though the manual is shared.
Two confusions prove costly during official inspections. The first is stacking up critical control points: multiplying CCPs dilutes monitoring instead of strengthening it, whereas the regulation calls for control proportionate to the hazard. The second is treating hygiene guides to good practice as a HACCP plan. These guides, provided for under the regulation, support implementation but do not replace the hazard analysis specific to each establishment. Regulation (EU) 2017/625 on official controls has also sharpened attention on documentary verification and on the match between what is written and what actually happens on the floor.
A compliance audit ends in a gap or a pass: the HACCP plan exists or it does not, monitoring is recorded or it is not. A maturity assessment asks a different question. What level of control does each component of the system sit at, and what specific action moves it up a level. A HACCP team that exists on paper but only meets after an incident, an annual verification carried out but never followed up, traceability that is thorough upstream and patchy downstream: these are situations that binary compliance does not capture, and that a score by theme makes visible and comparable across sites.
In Datamensio, the framework is ready to use and adaptable. The AI adjusts the themes, questions and wording of the levels to your activity, whether industrial bakery, cold-chain logistics platform or catering, or builds a bespoke version from your own documents: HACCP manual, sector-specific good practice guide, client audit reports.
Reference standard: Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 on the hygiene of foodstuffs, articles 4 and 5
The themes assessed
Prerequisite programmes and hygiene of premises
Design and upkeep of premises and equipment, forward flow, separation of flows, cleaning and disinfection, pest control, water quality, waste management under annexes I and II.
HACCP team and scope
Team composition and skills involved, definition of the study scope by product and line, description of products and intended use, process flow diagrams and on-site verification.
Hazard analysis
Identification of biological, chemical, physical and allergen hazards, assessment of severity and likelihood, scientific and regulatory sources used, justification of the control measures adopted.
Determination of critical control points
Method for determining CCPs, distinction between CCPs and operational prerequisite programmes, proportionality of the number of points retained, documentation of the reasoning.
Critical limits and validation
Setting of critical limits, scientific or regulatory basis, validation of heat treatment scales and time/temperature pairs, revalidation upon process change.
Monitoring and records
Monitoring methods and frequency, designated responsibilities, calibration of measuring instruments, form and retention of records, use made of observed deviations.
Corrective action and non-conformity management
Handling of critical limit breaches, decision on the fate of affected products, root cause analysis, traceability of actions and verification of their effectiveness.
Verification and system review
Verification programme, internal audits, control analyses, periodic review of the HACCP plan, revision after a change of product, process or equipment.
Traceability, withdrawal and recall
Batch identification upstream and downstream, ability to reconstruct history within expected timeframes, withdrawal and recall procedure, simulation tests, notification of authorities.
Training, staff hygiene and documentation
Initial and ongoing training in HACCP principles, staff dress code and health, management of visitors and temporary staff, document control, version currency and accessibility of procedures at the workstation.
A short version of the framework is available for the online self-assessment.
Frequently asked questions
Is regulation (EC) No 852/2004 certifiable?
No. It is a European regulatory obligation, checked by the competent authorities, not a certification scheme. Private certifications such as IFS or BRCGS build on the same HACCP principles and go further. The assessment measures the maturity of your system and prepares for these milestones, it does not issue any certificate.
How does this differ from a food safety compliance audit?
An audit checks whether a requirement is met and ends in a gap finding. The assessment places each component of the system on a five-level maturity scale and points to the action that moves it forward. The two are complementary: the assessment prepares and prioritises, the audit records.
How long does the assessment take?
The short version takes 20 to 30 minutes, usually completed by the site quality manager. The full version involves several contributors, production, maintenance, procurement, and spans one to two weeks, most of the time being spent gathering evidence and records.
Does the framework apply to primary production?
The article 5 obligation for HACCP-based procedures does not cover primary production, which falls under annex I and its own hygiene rules. The framework distinguishes the two scopes: you select the one that matches your activity, or both for an integrated supply chain.
Can the framework be adapted to our activity?
Yes. Questions, levels and themes can all be modified, and the AI generates a version tailored to your process from your HACCP manual or your sector’s good practice guide. You retain full control of the framework.
How can several sites be compared with each other?
Each site is assessed on the same grid, with a score by theme. The benchmark compares business units against each other and each site against its own earlier campaigns. The AI groups recurring gaps into a single cross-site roadmap rather than into separate isolated action plans.
What does the assessment actually produce?
A score by theme, a target level, and the gap between the two converted into an action plan. Each item in the plan can be linked to a service from the catalogue, with its cost, timeframe and expected effect on the score. The readout is shared with sites or clients in a branded space.
Where is the data hosted?
In France, with OVH, backed up with Scaleway. No transfer outside the European Union. The AI models used can be selected, including from European providers.