BASIC REQUIREMENTS OF THE UKRAINIAN LAW REGARDING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE HACCP SYSTEM AT THE MEAT PROCESSING ENTERPRISES IN THE CONTEXT OF EU LEGISLATION

Abstract

The article deals with the legislation of Ukraine on the implementation of the HACCP system at the meat processing enterprises in the context of EU legislation. The development, implementation, monitoring and verification of the HACCP system depends on a complex of managerial, organizational and technical factors. Considerable attention is paid to small and medium-sized enterprises, which usually serve local consumers, they have a limited market share, their owners are one or more people; they are managed by their own owners, who solve all management issues themselves with little help from other people. HACCP provides a way to improve the organization, based on the involvement and further involvement of staff members of meat processing enterprises in maintaining the proper quality of meat products. In the context of food safety, the most important is the production staff who controls the critical points. Participation in technological changes and the delegation of control to those who are directly related to the production process is the driving mechanism for introducing the necessary changes and an important condition for the successful functioning of the HACCP. The feature of the HACCP system for small and medium-sized enterprises is that typical small and medium-sized enterprises usually have limited resources (personnel, time, qualifications, experience, technical competence and finance). In the context of HACCP, the technical competence necessary for the development of the system is of particular importance. Knowledge of the HACCP methodology, which can be acquired during study, must be necessarily supported by relevant knowledge in the field of microbiology and food chemistry. Another and, perhaps most important, factor in the lack of technical knowledge is that this fact itself is often not realized. According to the legislation of Ukraine, food products must meet the minimum safety parameters and quality specifications established by the relevant state control bodies. One of the tools to achieve compliance with the minimum safety parameters is the HACCP system. The general requirement for mandatory introduction of the HACCP system by food manufacturers is established in the laws of Ukraine. Given Ukraine's accession to the WTO, the minimum requirements for the HACCP system should be guided by the relevant WTO agreement - the Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement. Effective legislative and regulatory food control systems are essential to protecting the health of consumers. Undoubtedly, one of the motivations for introducing HACCP systems for food companies is to increase export capacity. The European market is potentially promising for Ukrainian meat products, however, given that the legal basis for ensuring the safety of food products in the European Union (EU) member states has recently gone through the crucial stage of reform and is not well-known for the Ukrainian producer, its detailed consideration will be useful.