Food Safety Experts Academy

Physical contamination occurs when unwanted objects such as metal, glass, plastic, wood or stones enter food products. These objects may originate from raw materials, processing equipment, maintenance activities, employees or the factory environment.

Effective prevention helps protect consumers, reduce complaints, prevent product recalls and minimise production losses. The training explains how to identify contamination sources and develop a structured approach to managing foreign object risks.

This training is designed for QA, Food Safety, QC, Production, Engineering, Maintenance and Operations professionals working in food manufacturing. It is also relevant for QA Managers, Food Safety Managers and corporate QA teams responsible for evaluating existing controls, improving prevention programmes and reducing contamination risks across one or multiple facilities.

Yes. The training supports practical physical hazard management relevant to EU food safety requirements, US FDA FSMA requirements under 21 CFR Part 117 and Canada's Safe Food for Canadians Regulations.

It also addresses prevention and control principles relevant to GFSI-recognised certification programmes such as IFS Food, BRCGS Food Safety and FSSC 22000. The training focuses on practical implementation rather than providing a detailed interpretation of each regulation or certification standard. Completing it does not, by itself, demonstrate compliance.

You will learn how to classify foreign objects, identify their origins and notification routes, create contamination heat maps and assess prerequisite programmes (PRPs).

The training also explains how to evaluate CCP and oPRP controls, including validation, verification frequency, detection performance and equipment reliability. Additional lessons cover factory housekeeping and 5S, employee engagement and the financial impact of foreign object incidents.

The training includes a Foreign Object Monitoring File, a PRP Risk Evaluation tool, a CCP and oPRP Risk Evaluation tool and a Foreign Object Cost Estimation Tool.

You also receive supporting materials on 5S and workforce engagement. These resources help you organise contamination findings, identify high-risk areas, assess control effectiveness, involve employees and build a business case for improvements.

Yes. The downloadable Excel tools are designed to help you carry out practical assessments using information from your own facility.

You can classify foreign objects and their sources, use monitoring information to identify recurring problems, map higher-risk factory locations and evaluate PRPs, CCPs and oPRPs. The cost estimation tool helps you quantify the financial impact of incidents and support improvement proposals.

Together, the tools provide a structured starting point for your own assessment and improvement planning. They do not replace a complete site-specific HACCP assessment, the necessary validation and verification activities or other applicable regulatory and certification requirements.

The training contains approximately 1 hour of on-demand video content across 34 lessons, supported by practical downloads. Additional time is needed to complete the assessments and apply the tools within your organisation.

You receive 1 year of access from enrolment, allowing you to revisit the lessons and tools as you evaluate existing controls and implement improvements.

Yes. After completing the training, you receive a certificate of completion that can be retained as evidence of professional development and internal food safety training.

Subtitles are available in 13 languages. You can also submit course-related questions through the learning portal in English, Spanish, French, German or Dutch.