Food Fraud and Food Defence Course: VACCP and TACCP

Introduction

Food fraud and food defence, covering VACCP, TACCP and supply chain vulnerability, is a 1-week course for food safety, procurement and site security staff, ending with a Food Fraud Vulnerability Assessment and Food Defence Plan for a case organisation. Audits stall and brands suffer when diluted honey, cut olive oil, bulked spices or substituted meat species pass supplier approval, or when an insider can reach a mixing vessel. Nominees already maintain supplier files or site controls and learn through case studies on raw material histories and site maps. CoreConcept Training Center delivers this food fraud and food defence course.

Course Objectives

• Distinguish food fraud, food defence, food safety and food quality using the food protection risk matrix, and place each threat in the right control system
• Score raw materials for economically motivated adulteration using price movement, supply concentration, fraud incident records and supplier opportunity
• Build a VACCP vulnerability assessment and mitigation plan for high-risk ingredients such as honey, edible oils, spices and meat species
• Conduct a TACCP threat assessment of site access, bulk liquid handling, ingredient addition and mixing points using CARVER+Shock scoring
• Set supplier controls, authenticity testing frequencies and tamper-evident measures in proportion to the assessed vulnerability
• Prepare an incident route for suspected adulteration or deliberate contamination, covering product hold, investigation and stakeholder communication

Target Audience

• Food safety and technical staff responsible for certification scheme documents and internal audit of fraud and defence controls
• Procurement and supplier quality staff responsible for raw material approval, specifications and supplier audits
• Site security and facilities staff responsible for access control, visitor management and camera coverage
• Production and warehouse supervisors responsible for bulk receipt, ingredient storage and mixing areas
• Retail and distribution quality staff responsible for own-label product integrity and returns handling

Course Outline

Day 1: Food Protection Risk Matrix and the Fraud Landscape

• Food Protection Risk Matrix Separating Safety, Quality, Fraud and Defence
• Fraud Typology of Substitution, Dilution, Mislabelling and Diversion
• Economically Motivated Adulteration Case Files for Honey and Olive Oil
• Insider, Disgruntled Employee and External Adversary Threat Profiles
• Current-State Review of Supplier Files and Site Security Records

Day 2: GFSI Scheme Expectations and the VACCP and TACCP Methods

• GFSI Benchmarking Expectations for Fraud and Defence Controls
• BRCGS Food Safety Clauses on Fraud Vulnerability and Site Security
• FSSC 22000 Additional Requirements for Fraud Mitigation and Food Defence
• VACCP Method Steps From Scoping to Mitigation Plan
• TACCP Method Steps From Threat Identification to Countermeasures

Day 3: Building the VACCP Vulnerability Assessment for Raw Materials

• Raw Material Inventory Grouping by Fraud Opportunity and Value
• Price Volatility and Supply Concentration Scoring Worksheet
• Fraud Incident Database Search for Saffron, Black Pepper and Turmeric
• Halal Meat Species Substitution and DNA Species Testing Strategy
• Authenticity Testing Frequency Matrix Linked to Vulnerability Score

Day 4: TACCP Site Threats, Tamper Protection and Incident Response

• CARVER+Shock Scoring of Bulk Liquid Receiving and Mixing Points
• Access Control Zones, Key Control and Role-Based Identification
• Tamper-Evident Seals, Lock Logs and Inventory Reconciliation Checks
• Background Screening and Security Awareness Briefings for Sensitive Roles
• Suspected Adulteration Incident Route From Product Hold to Recall

Day 5: Case Study Build of the Food Fraud and Food Defence Plan

• Case Study of an Oil Supplier With Unexplained Price Gap
• Case Study of an Unlocked Syrup Tank on Night Shift
• Case Study of a Spice Blend Failing Authenticity Screening
• Mitigation Ownership Table and Reassessment Triggers for Both Plans
• Food Fraud Vulnerability Assessment and Food Defence Plan Completion

Skills You Will Gain

• Fraud Vulnerability Scoring
• Threat Assessment
• Raw Material Risk Profiling
• Authenticity Testing Planning
• Supplier Fraud Controls
• Site Access Control
• Tamper Evidence Management
• Adulteration Incident Handling

Why Attend This Course

• Deliver a Food Fraud Vulnerability Assessment and Food Defence Plan to the technical manager and site leadership as certification audit evidence
• Decide which raw materials need authenticity testing, extra supplier checks or alternative sourcing, based on scored vulnerability
• Avoid audit nonconformities, substituted ingredients reaching customers and uncontrolled access to open product
• Brief procurement, production and security colleagues on fraud indicators, tamper checks and reporting routes

Conclusion

Back at work, the participant gives the technical manager, the procurement lead and the site security lead a Food Fraud Vulnerability Assessment and Food Defence Plan. Procurement uses its vulnerability scores to set supplier checks and authenticity testing, security uses its threat map to tighten access around open product, and the technical team presents both as audit evidence. After the first supplier price shock, security incident or certification audit, the team should review which scores changed, whether mitigation owners acted and which controls need strengthening.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What should participants know before a food fraud and food defence course?

Participants should already work with supplier approval, food safety documents or site controls in a food business. Bringing anonymised raw material lists, supplier questionnaires or a site plan helps them apply the VACCP and TACCP exercises to their own operation.

How does a food fraud and food defence course differ from a HACCP course?

It addresses deliberate acts: adulteration for profit and contamination intended to cause harm. HACCP courses control accidental biological, chemical and physical hazards in the process, so hazard analysis appears here only where it meets fraud and defence controls.

Why do food fraud and food defence need separate VACCP and TACCP assessments?

Their motives differ. Fraud seeks profit and avoids detection, so VACCP studies raw material opportunity and supplier behaviour. Defence threats seek harm or disruption, so TACCP studies site access, target attractiveness and insider routes.

What do participants take back from the food fraud and food defence course?

Participants take back a Food Fraud Vulnerability Assessment and Food Defence Plan for a case organisation, with a raw material scoring worksheet, authenticity testing matrix, CARVER+Shock site map and incident route they can adapt.