ABSTRACT
The ultimate responsibility for food safety rests with the food industry. Contemporary quality-assurance programs in the food industry are designed to achieve good manufacturing practices. Certification that food products meet government requirements or customer specifications is a growing area of activity. This is an additional responsibility that is being imposed on the food industry and is a way of obtaining safety and quality assurance in situations where it either is costly or impossible to directly control these characteristics. Governments have established rigorous standards according to prevailing cultural and political conditions and wish to assure their citizens that imported foods meet the same standards imposed on domestic food producers. Food safety and quality assurance begins with the design and development of food products. It encompasses the development, organization, and implementation of a variety of activities aimed at maintaining and/or improving the safety and quality of products.
