Dharmik Certification

Introduction:

“Hindus take their diets very seriously and food plays a major role in Hinduism. Hindus have their own religious dietary laws like other faiths and it is about time that the world recognizes and respects their needs,” Hindu dietary system helps to human body for healthy living, enjoying
tests and simultaneously ensures for preserving environments. There was a no formal certification system exist for food sell or served in market; which assure to Hindu that their religious values, healthiness, nutrition values and prepared, stored and handled in strict hygienic condition.

There are various types of food habits in various Panths of Hindus. Some Hindus are strict vegetarian, some Hindus like Jain, Swaminarayan Panths are not even consume “KandMul –Vegetable grow below ground”, however many Hindus consumes Non-veg and some Hindus eat egg products.

Keeping this thing in mind this food certification system will give different types of certificates.However each certificate will ensure for maintaining values of particular Panths faiths and beliefs.

This standard specifies requirements for different type of Hindu food safety management system, which is binding for any manufacturers, preservers, transporters and/or sellers to strict adherence. This standard may have additional requirement than local regulatory requirement, therefore compliance of local regulatory requirements are must and it is part of this standard requirement.

This food also can be consumed by other religious people.

Benefit of the Hindu food certificates:

Today food adulteration, use of inferior quality raw material and sabotage has been increased in the world. It is not possible for regulatory body to inspect and ensure that the food being sold in the market are free from harmful additives and complete safe for human consumption.Therefore getting additional HFC will be an advantage for the organization or sellers to earn
trust of customers.

• It will help to expand business.
• No worries about quality of raw and packing materials.

1. Scope:

This is generic standard and it can be applicable to any of following…

• All food or eatable products manufacturing organization, traders, hotels,
  restaurants, canteen, carters.
• All energy drinks and drinking water manufacturers.
• All cosmetics and Ayurveda medicines manufacturers.
• All bakery and dairy products manufactures.
• Suppliers of raw materials like masala, flavors and fragrance products to
  enhance tests of food.
• Suppliers of primary packing materials.
• It is regardless of size and therefore it is applicable to local movable food cart also.
• All the temples, Gurudwara; which serves foods and distribute prasadis.

2. Definition:

Hindu: A Hindu is a person who believes in Hinduism and follows values of spirituality, Vaidic science.

Hindu Origin: There are some Panths and religions believe that they originated from Hinduism only for example Buddha, Jain, Sikh etc. and their roots are found in Hinduism.

Food safety management: The Food Safety and Management Systems is a set of process established to direct and control food safety aspects.

Veg-Food: The food prepared from vegetables and natural ingredients only.

Non-Veg food: The food prepared from vegetables and/or living or dead creatures and use of natural ingredients only. Use of eggs will also consider as non-vegetarian.

Jain-Food: The Jain cuisine is completely lacto vegetarian and also  excludes underground vegetables such as potato, garlic, onion etc., toprevent injuring small insects and microorganisms; and also to prevent  the entire plant getting uprooted and killed.

Food ingredient: It is one of the components used to mix as part of recipe of end food product.

Food additives: Substances that are added to food to maintain or improve the safety, freshness, taste, texture, or appearance of food are known as food additives.

Food chain: Food chain means generation, collection or cultivation,storage, distribution, supply of raw materials or ingredients that use for preparing eatable food products.

Food safety hazard: Food safety hazard refers to any agent which has potential to cause adverse health effect to the consumers. It can be in the form of biological, chemical or physical.

Primary packing: Primary packaging is the last piece of packaging between your product and the end user. It is something like the wrapper on a package of food, or the can that holds your soda.

Secondary packing: Secondary packaging is the packaging that used to  protect the food items from physical damage.

End product(s): Means ultimate food product; which can be eat by the  consumers.

Food safety audit: Food safety audit is systematic examination of entire food processing or preparation process to identify potential deviation which cans ultimate affect to food product quality. It covers entire food chain.

Food safety inspection: It is a spot inspection to ensure that the health and hygiene condition is maintained during preparing food products. 

Food safety team: Appointed by the management to ensure and support for achieving Hindu food certification objectives. 

Food safety inspector/ auditors: A competent person(s) appointed by  the management to inspect or audit the food safety management system.

Food adulteration: Adulteration is an addition of another substance to a food item in order to increase the quantity of the food item in raw form or prepared form, which results in the loss of actual quality of food item. The added items can be either harmful or not-harmful to the consumers. But it doesn’t give any nutritional values and same purity of the food  prepared for the intention.

Open ready to eat food: It means the food product or items served by  the manufacturers or sellers that can be directly eat by the consumer with or without test enhancers.

Packaged food:Packaged food. ’ means single foodstuff in a whole or  partially, pre-packaged in the packaging so that its content cannot be altered/modified unless the packaging is opened or damaged.

Sabotage: Deliberate mixing of additional material to create harmful effect to the targeted consumers or mixing of human waste to affect consumer’s religious feeling.

Perishable food: Perishable foods are those likely to spoil, decay or   become unsafe to consume if not kept refrigerated at 40 °F or below, or frozen at 0 °F or below.

Self-life: The shelf life of food is the period during which the food retains    an acceptable quality from a safety and organoleptic point of view, and  depends on four main factors, namely formulation, processing, packaging and storage conditions.

3. General requirements:

3.1 Legal requirements:

• The manufacture shall comply all the related regulations applicable for his business.
• Maintained list of applicable rules and regulation with compliance status.

3.2 Selection and procurement of raw materials:

Select and procure the raw materials for your food products from reliable sources only to ensure purity and quality of raw materials. All the raw   materials must be purchased from either Hindu or Hindu origins merchants or manufacturers only.

In case of requirement of purchase from Non-Hindu must be declared to the  HFC team. An action plan must be submitted to replace the Non-Hindu   supplier.

3.3 Storage of raw materials:

• All the raw materials, additives, ingredients, masalas etc. shall be stored in condition so that it does not get spoil or generate infestation.
• All the veg and Non-veg raw materials, additives, ingredients, masalas etc. shall be stored separately so that they do not get mixed.
• There shall be different color code for trays or storage bins for storing Veg and Non-veg food.
• Good housekeeping shall be maintained all the time.
• Pest control shall be done regularly using appropriate pest control methods and materials. Use of natural pest control is encouraged.

3.4 Infrastructure and work environment:

The owner or businessman or manufacturer shall ensure …

• To provide appropriate infrastructure or work environment so that quality, purity and religious values are maintained to the food items.
• To provide separate sanitation facilities for man and women. The sanitation facility should be away from food storage, processing, serving and temple area.
• Shall provide soaps, detergent, sanitizers etc. for all the workmen/
  employees.
• Shall provide washing area with appropriate waste disposal.
• For proper ventilation to food processing and serving area.
• Maintaining hygienic condition all the time.
• That factory or hotel or business place is prepared considering “VASTU”
  requirements at reasonably possible.

3.5 Food preparation:

   Note: Use of any non-veg ingredients in entire food chain for preparation of finished product is strictly prohibited for Veg or Jain food.

• Short prayer by all the employees in group shall be conducted in begging of the shift for offering to god and getting thankful blessing of god.
• Food shall be prepared under strict hygienic condition only.
• All the persons engaged for preparing food shall be maintained health and hygiene all the time.
• There shall be separate sections for Veg and Non-veg food preparation,
  storage and serving counters.
• All the utensils used for Non-veg shall have different color code or
  identification.
• Use of stale and leftover cooked food from previous day is not permitted to use for preparing food.

Use of Cow meat, fat or bones is strictly prohibited even in Non-Veg food
preparation.

3.6 Transportation:

• Any veg or Non-veg raw materials, ingredients, masalas or finished products shall be transported separately.
• There shall be different color code for Veg and Non-veg food transporting
  vehicles.
• There shall be no poisonous, hazardous or harmful product shall be
  transported along with food items.

3.7 Serving of food:

• There shall be separate food service counter for Veg and Non-Veg food.
• There shall be separate section for vegetarian food consumers. So that they can eat veg food without affecting their religious beliefs.
• Separate color code shall be use for Veg and Non-Veg food plates.

4. Employment and services:

• The manufacturer or businessman must be employ only Hindu and Hindu origin people in any section of his business.
• The manufacturer or businessman get services like storage, transportation,
  disposal, pest control etc. from only Hindu and Hindu origin people. In case of use of Non-Hindu service provider, it shall be declare to the certification body with action plan to replace it.
• The employer will employ any person after due verification about his religion and police verification only.
• Use of reference from reputed or familiar person for employment will provide safety to the employer and fellow colleagues.
• Ensure that all the employees shall maintained good health and hygiene all the time.

5. Documentation:

Appropriate documentation shall be maintained by the owner to demonstrate that the requirement of these standards is fulfills.

6. Food safety inspection and audit

6.1 Appointment of food safety team and inspectors:

• The owner or businessman shall be appointing food safety team member
  from all the sections to ensure for proper compliance of food safety
  management system.
• The owner or businessman shall be appointed food safety inspectors in
  appropriate numbers.

6.2 Food safety inspection and audit:

• The food safety inspector(s) will inspect all the areas like storage, food
  preparing or processing, serving and appropriate disposal of waste on daily basis.
• An internal audit of food safety management system shall be carried out
  annually start from raw material purchase to waste disposal to ensure
  compliance of regulatory requirements and HFC standard requirements and recorded.
• Validity of the certificate shall be 3 years and annual surveillance audit shall be carried out every year by HFC food safety team.

7. Awareness and training:

• Awareness training shall be provided to all the workmen; who are engaged in storage, transportation and food preparation of processing to maintained health and hygiene during working.
• Make aware about the possible risk and mitigation measures to the food and food items.

8. Disposal of waste and expired food products:

• The owner or businessman or manufacturer shall be examine regularly that all the open or packaged foods are not expired or spoiled.
• In case of any food items found spoiled, infested or expired shall be disposed-off as per statutory requirements and disposed-off through authorized waste disposal agencies.

9. Best practices:

Following best practices are encouraged.

1. Use of organic waste converters is desirable for disposal of food waste.
2. Reuse of recycle water for cleaning of utensils, housekeeping and other than washing of raw material and food processing is desirable.
3. Use of organic foods.
4. Use of Non-plastic material for primary and secondary packaging.
5. Use of clean and green energy for entire food chain.

10. Hazard analysis:

The owner or businessman or manufacturer shall have to carry out hazard analysis for entire food chain annually.

• The food safety team shall be identifying possible physical, chemical or
  biological risk to the food items.
• The food safety team shall also identify mitigation measures for each possible risk.
• In case of risk is not tolerable than the food items shall be recall and disposed of as per regulatory requirements.

Annexures:

Annexure-1 Main HFC requirements chart:

Annexure-2 : List of raw materials
Annexure-3: Hazard Analysis
Annexure-3 : Inspection checklist
Anexure-4: List of documents required for certification and surveillance audit