PREVRA CCP Decision Tree: Identify Your Critical Control Points with Confidence
The Codex Alimentarius decision tree framework adapted for UK food businesses. Use this to determine which steps in your process are genuine CCPs — and which can be managed through prerequisite programmes instead.
Why the CCP decision tree matters for your HACCP plan
Every UK food business must implement a HACCP-based food safety management system. But the most common HACCP failure is not missing a CCP — it is identifying too many. When every step is a CCP, none of them are managed properly. The decision tree forces you to ask the right questions in sequence so you only designate a CCP where a control measure is genuinely essential to eliminate or reduce a hazard to an acceptable level.
Counter-intuitively, cooking to 75°C is not always a CCP. If the subsequent cooling and cold-holding steps are uncontrolled, the cooking step alone does not guarantee safe food. The decision tree reveals these system-level dependencies that single-step thinking misses.
Using the decision tree in your HACCP study
Work through each process step in your flow diagram, from raw material receipt to final service. For each step, identify all significant hazards — biological, chemical, and physical. Then apply the four questions in sequence: Is there a control measure? Is the step specifically designed to eliminate or reduce the hazard? Could contamination exceed acceptable levels? Will a subsequent step eliminate the hazard?
Only steps where you answer yes-yes-yes-no qualify as CCPs. Document your reasoning for each decision — an EHO will ask to see it. A digital SFBB system can store your decision tree alongside your HACCP plan so the logic trail is always accessible during inspections.
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