Level 3 · Lesson 2

Deviations and
corrective action

Monitoring is only useful if you act on what it finds. This lesson is the moment a reading comes back wrong: what a deviation is, what to do, and when it is time to call someone.

The word

A deviation is a reading outside the limit

A deviation is

a reading that falls outside the critical limit. The cook is below 75°C. The fridge is above 5°C. The control has been lost, and the food may not be safe.

A deviation is not a disaster. It is a signal, and the system already has a plan for it. Your job is to recognise it and act.

What to do

The moment you find a deviation

Find a deviation, and the first question is simple: is there a planned fix you are able to carry out?

Where a deviation can go

Fix it, escalate it, or discard it

Take the planned fix

If the plan has an action you can do, do it at once. Undercooked food goes back on the heat until it passes.

Escalate if unsure

If you are not sure, or it is beyond your authority, tell a supervisor. Guessing is never the right move.

Discard if unsafe

Food that cannot be brought back to safe is thrown away. It is never served on the hope that it is fine.

Speed matters. Take the planned action as soon as the deviation is found, while it can still be contained.

The step people forget

Write down the deviation and what you did

Every deviation gets recorded: what went wrong, and what you did about it. The record proves the problem was caught and handled, which is the whole point of monitoring.

An unrecorded deviation looks exactly like a deviation that was ignored. If it is not written down, no one can show it was dealt with.

Try it

Route three deviations

Read each deviation, then answer the one question the flow asks. Watch which way it sends the food.

Case 1 of 3

Planned fix you are able to carry out?

Answer the question for case 1.

Where they ended

Every route finishes in the same place

Case 1Undercooked chicken, planned action you are trained to doDo it nowRecord it

Case 2Warm delivery, nothing in the plan covers itEscalateRecord it

Case 3Delayed cool, action exists but you cannot tell if it appliesEscalateRecord it

Two of the three left your hands and one did not. Every one of them still ended at the record, because an unrecorded deviation looks exactly like a deviation that was ignored.

Your turn

A reading you are not sure about

A chest freezer is reading warmer than it should and you are not sure how long it has been that way or whether the food is still safe. There is no planned action for this that you are trained to take. What is the right move?

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The five things to remember

1A deviation is a reading that falls outside the critical limit

2Take the planned corrective action as soon as the deviation is found

3Escalate when you are unsure or the issue is beyond your authority

4Discard food that cannot be made safe, and never serve on hope

5Record the deviation and the action taken, every time

Sample question

One question from the quiz

What is a deviation in a HACCP system?

Tap anywhere to continue

You can act on a deviation

Recognise it, fix it or escalate it, and write it down. Notice how often recording came up. The next lesson is about exactly that: records, and why they carry so much weight. The quiz is where you prove what you know and earn a certificate recognised by TrustBite. One payment covers all three levels, so Levels 1 and 2 are included at no extra cost.

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Back to Lesson 1 Next: Lesson 3, Records and documentation Training a team? See group options

Deviations andcorrective action