Food safety is the result of several factors. Minimum standards on hygiene must be laid down by legislation, and food business operators must set up and put into action programmes and procedures for food safety to achieve the objectives set by Regulation (EC) No 852, taking into account all basic requirements on hygiene, as well as self-monitoring, based on HACCP principles.

Success in implementing these procedures requires commitment and full cooperation from the employees in the food sector. To this end, employees must receive training.

Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004, on the hygiene of foodstuffs stipulates that:

Food business operators must ensure:

• Supervision and instruction or training of those handling food products on matters of food hygiene, in accordance with their duties.
• Those responsible for developing and maintaining the procedure mentioned in section 1 of article 5 of this regulation, or for implementing the guidance, have received proper training regarding implementing HACCP principles.
• Compliance with all requirements of national legislation relating to training programmes fro workers in certain food sectors.

In order to provide food businesses with guidance in the field of these three points laid down for training, the “ Guidance document on training food handlers" was ratified in the Institutional Commission of 21 July 2010.