An HACCP plan outline, an overview of mandatory documentation and sample tables you can adapt straight away for your operation. No unnecessary theory – just what works in the kitchen and during an inspection.
HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) is a system for monitoring food safety at points where something could go wrong. Under Regulation (EC) No 852/2004, every food business must implement it – whether a restaurant, bistro, café, pâtisserie or food truck.
A sample or template saves you work on the format, but it can never replace the content. The plan must reflect your product range, equipment, processes and layout. That is why you will find an outline, a list of mandatory documentation and sample tables below – fill them in with your own details and you have a working foundation.
Four changes that often leave older documentation and even well-meaning advice online out of date.
On 1 January 2025, the Czech Agriculture and Food Inspection Authority (SZPI) took over inspections of food service businesses. Registration of premises is governed by Act No 321/2024 Coll. – notify the authority before you start operating.
Act No 167/2023 Coll. abolished the requirement for health certificates from 1 July 2023. Instead, you must provide evidence of occupational health care and your own records of basic food hygiene training.
Article 5(2) of Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 allows simplified procedures for small premises. However, their scope depends on your actual activities – a downloaded template does not justify simplifying your procedures.
Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 requires you to inform guests about 14 allergens in both food and drinks. This also applies to businesses without their own kitchen that only sell ready-made products.
Address, capacity, opening hours, layout, and a list of food categories and processes (refrigeration, cooking, delivery).
For each food category, map the journey from receiving goods through storage, preparation and cooking to service or delivery.
At each step, identify biological, chemical and physical hazards and assess their severity and likelihood.
Typically, receiving goods, refrigeration and freezing, cooking, cooling cooked food, hot food service and delivery.
For each CCP, specify a limit (such as a temperature), who takes measurements, how often and with what equipment – and include a recording form.
What happens when a limit is not met: reprocess, chill further, discard or inform the manager – always keeping a record.
Internal checks of the plan, thermometer calibration, reviews when the menu, equipment or processes change, and archiving all forms.
Work through it line by line. Anything you do not have on file and keep up to date will be flagged during an inspection.
| Document | What it contains | How often |
|---|---|---|
| HACCP plan | Description of the operation, flow diagrams, hazard analysis, critical control points and limits | Review once a year and whenever the operation changes |
| Fridge and freezer temperature record | Record each unit separately, including corrective action for any deviation | Daily (typically 1–2 times a day) |
| Cooking and service temperature record | Core food temperature, hot food service, cooling down | According to production, with every batch checked for high-risk foods |
| Cleaning and disinfection plan and record | What, with which products and equipment, how often and by whom – kitchen, storage areas, equipment and staff areas | Daily, weekly or monthly, according to the plan |
| Goods receipt and supplier records | Temperature on receipt, packaging condition, DMT/MD, documentation | On every delivery |
| Staff training | Basic hygiene, HACCP principles, allergens – participants’ signatures | On joining and then once a year |
| Allergen records | Identification of the 14 legally specified allergens in each dish, with information available to guests | Update whenever the menu changes |
| Rodent control, insect control and waste | Contract, reports, waste and frying oil management plan | As specified in the contract, usually 2–4 times a year |
A record sheet template. Add your own equipment, the names of those responsible and the date – the limits are based on standard practice in Czech food businesses and must be adjusted for specific equipment and processes.
| Critical control point | Critical limit | Who takes the measurement | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Refrigerated storage – ingredients | 0 °C to +5 °C | Shift supervisor | Morning and evening |
| Refrigerated storage – meat and fish | 0 °C to +2 °C (fish on ice 0–2 °C) | Chef responsible for the station | Morning and evening |
| Frozen storage | −18 °C or below | Shift supervisor | Once a day |
| Cooking – food core temperature | min. +75 °C for 1 minute | Chef responsible for the station | Every high-risk batch |
| Hot food service / bain-marie | min. +63 °C | Shift supervisor | Before and throughout service |
| Cooling down cooked food | from +63 °C to +5 °C within 4 hours | Chef responsible for the station | Every batch |
| Delivery and transport | Hot food min. +60 °C / chilled food max. +5 °C | Driver / dispatch team | On dispatch |
Five HACCP forms an inspector will want to see during an inspection. Rather than downloading a file you would have to rework anyway, use the columns to create your own table (on paper or in Excel), tailored to your equipment. Print out a month's worth in advance and display it by the fridge or cooker.
Columns: Date · Equipment · Measured temperature · Limit · Signature · Corrective action
Columns: Date · Dish/batch · Core temperature · Time · Serving temperature · Signature
Columns: Date · Supplier · Item · Temperature on receipt · Packaging condition · Best-before date (DMT) · Received by
Columns: Date · Area/equipment · Product · Concentration · Carried out by · Checked by
Columns: Date · Topic · Trainer · Participant’s name · Signature
Critical control points vary depending on what you prepare and how you prepare it. Here is a basic outline for the most common types of small food business.
Typical CCPs: Receipt of meat and fish, refrigeration, cooking, cooling down, hot food service
Practical tip: Create separate flow diagrams for each dish category – cooked-to-order dishes, pre-prepared meals and cold dishes.
Typical CCPs: Refrigeration of milk and desserts, receipt of patisserie products, service
Practical tip: If you buy in desserts, focus on receipt and the refrigerated display cabinet; if you make them in-house, cooking is an additional step to monitor.
Typical CCPs: Transport and refrigeration of ingredients, cooking, hot food service
Practical tip: Limited space = stricter separation of raw and ready-to-eat food; keep a thermometer and record form right at the serving point.
Typical CCPs: Eggs and cream, heat treatment of cream fillings, rapid chilling, refrigerated storage
Practical tip: Cream-based products pose the highest risk – record cooling down and storage at or below +5 °C for every batch.
There are plenty of ready-made files available to download online, but they almost always describe a different operation and will not stand up to an inspection. That is why this page provides the columns for all five record sheets and a plan outline – you can use them to create a table in Excel or on paper in just a few minutes, tailored to your own equipment.
A small café, bar or bistro can usually manage with a refrigeration temperature log, a goods receipt log, a cleaning and disinfection schedule, training records and an allergen list. Under the simplified arrangements for small businesses, documentation can be brief, but it must reflect what you actually do.
A HACCP plan (description of the operation, hazard analysis, critical control points and limits), refrigeration, freezing and cooking temperature records, a goods receipt log, a cleaning and disinfection schedule, staff training records, an allergen list and rodent control documentation. A complete checklist, including how often records should be kept, appears further up this page.
A description of the operation and product range, a production process flow diagram, hazard analysis, identification of critical control points, critical limits, monitoring methods, corrective actions, verification and record-keeping. You will find a seven-step HACCP plan outline above.
Yes. European Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 requires every food business operator to implement and maintain procedures based on HACCP principles – including restaurants, bistros, cafés, food trucks and pâtisseries. Food service businesses are now supervised by the Czech Agriculture and Food Inspection Authority (SZPI).
On 1 January 2025, responsibility for supervising food service businesses transferred from regional public health authorities to the Czech Agriculture and Food Inspection Authority (SZPI). Premises must be registered with SZPI under Act No 321/2024 Coll. The public health authority continues to handle other matters, but expect SZPI to inspect your kitchen and documentation.
Yes, just on a smaller scale. Even if you only serve draught drinks, mix drinks and sell packaged goods, you are handling food – which means managing deliveries, storage, refrigeration, cleaning and disinfection, and allergens. Article 5(2) of Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 allows simplified procedures for small businesses, but your documentation must reflect what you actually do.
No. The requirement for food industry workers to hold health certificates was abolished on 1 July 2023 (Act No 167/2023 Coll.). They have been replaced by occupational health care and documented basic food hygiene training – it is your training records that will save you during an inspection, not a certificate.
Yes. Procedures and documentation should be in place from the first day you serve a guest food or drink. It makes practical sense to have the plan ready while you are finishing the premises – it informs the layout of sinks, refrigeration and storage areas, as well as the cleaning and disinfection schedule.
The inspection authority requires corrective action and imposes a fine; where serious hygiene failings are found, it can close the business on the spot. Failure to follow procedures based on HACCP principles has long been one of the most common findings in hospitality – and putting things right typically costs many times more than a properly prepared plan.
Good manufacturing and hygiene practice (SVHP) covers the basic operating rules – cleaning, personal hygiene and storage. A CP is a control point where you monitor a risk, but a failure does not directly endanger health. A CCP is a critical control point where a failure could endanger health – so it requires a numerical limit, measurements and records.
No. A template provides an outline and sample forms, but the plan must reflect your actual operation – your product range, equipment and processes, layout and staff numbers. Using a document without adapting it is the most common reason for a finding of non-compliance during an inspection.
The legislation does not require the person preparing the plan to be certified. The operator can prepare it themselves or use an external consultant. What matters is that the documentation reflects the operation and that the team actually uses it and keeps records.
Operational records (temperatures, cleaning and disinfection, goods received and training) are normally kept for at least one year, and longer for some activities. The plan itself remains valid until the product range, equipment and processes, or premises layout changes – it must then be updated.
The most commonly missing items are completed fridge and freezer temperature records, an up-to-date cleaning and disinfection plan, staff training records and supplier records. The document alone is not enough – inspectors check whether it is being followed in practice.
In the Start Up programme, we cover all legal requirements (HACCP, occupational health and safety (BOZP)), alongside your till system, recipes and stock management. For established operations, we review and refine the documentation so that the team actually keeps it up to date.
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