The Retail Food Program at SC DHEC began offering HACCP workshops in 2021 for our industry partners who perform “special processes” in their permitted retail food establishments. SC Regulation 61-25, based on the 2017 FDA Model Food Code, requires approved HACCP plans for these processes. We are continuing to offer these free workshops to assist retail food establishments in meeting this challenge.

We are pleased to announce our FREE HACCP instruction and coaching workshop for meat preservation and curing for all interested retail food establishments.

Specialized processes such as curing of meats hold great appeal to retail food establishments for preserving foods, creating unique flavors, and providing value-added and high-end products for customers to enjoy. However, preservation processes carry added risk. To control the risk, the FDA Food Code and SC Regulation 61-25 require retail food establishments (RFEs) conducting these processes to have approved HACCP food safety plans. It is essential that RFEs conducting processes such as meat preservation and curing use proper controls to ensure the safety of each process.

Our July workshop will focus on developing a HACCP plan for meat preservation processes, including curing. Processes covered will include:

• Fully cooked, non-shelf stable sausages and fermented dry or semi-dry sausages
• Whole muscle curing (hams, bacon, pastrami, etc.)
• Dried meat products (jerky, carne seca, biltong)
• Smoked fish (if there are participants interested in this process)

The first segment will be a webinar using Microsoft Teams on July 10, 2023 from 8:45 AM to 3:00 PM (12:00 to 1:15 lunch break), providing instruction on HACCP and the food safety concerns relating to meat preservation and curing processes. Segment 1 is an excellent way to provide formal training, as required by SC Regulation 61-25, to team members who use these processes.

The second segment will be a one-day in person workshop taking place on July 17, 2023 from 8:45 AM to 3:30 PM (11:45 to 1:00 lunch break). We will guide participants through the process of writing a HACCP plan using a template we will provide in advance. Each participant will need either a laptop or desktop computer to allow writing their HACCP plan during the Segment 2 workshop. If you have been working on a HACCP plan, or if you have set aside a meat preservation or curing process, this is an opportunity for learning and assistance to get your process approved.

• The SC Department of Education Office of Career and Technical Education has approved certificate renewal credits for educators who complete both segments of this “Meat Preservation and Curing HACCP Seminar” and who submit a completed HACCP plan to SC DHEC.

Each session will be interactive, so bring your questions! Our goal is to guide participants in writing a draft HACCP plan as near completion as possible during Segment 2. Draft HACCP plans for SC establishments should be submitted to DHEC for review at the end of the workshop. Upon review, we will provide one-on-one guidance to assist in resolving remaining questions or concerns, so you can complete the approval process successfully.

Please register up to four participants by completing the survey  using the button below.  We will provide confirmation of your registration within a few days, along with the HACCP template you have requested. It is essential that the template we provide be available to you for use during the webinar and workshop.

Registration will close on July 7, 2022. We do not currently have another HACCP workshop for meat preservation and curing processes scheduled for 2023.  

Interested persons should contact us at foodvariances@dhec.sc.gov for more information or to register for a workshop.