Creating an Effective Environmental Monitoring Plan (EMP) for the Food Industry

Webinar Overview

Course Modules:

Creating an effective environmental monitoring plan (EMP) for the food industry 

It is recommended that trainees have completed Principles of Hygiene and Sanitation in Food and Beverage Processing in preparation for this course.

Course Description:

This course provides a comprehensive and practical framework for designing, implementing and optimising Environmental Monitoring Programs in food processing environments.

Moving beyond a compliance-driven approach, the training positions EMP as a core element of the Food Safety Management System. Participants will learn how to proactively detect and manage environmental contamination risks before they impact finished products, with a strong focus on Listeria monocytogenes control in ready-to-eat environments.

The course integrates EU and US regulatory expectations, including recent updates to microbiological criteria, and translates them into actionable operational practices. Key topics include risk-based sampling, zoning, environmental trend analysis, corrective actions, and the use of indicator organisms as early warning signals.

Through practical examples and a structured methodology, participants will gain the tools to transform EMPs from routine testing programmes into effective prevention systems that support regulatory compliance, audit readiness and continuous improvement.

Suitable for:

• Quality, food safety and hygiene managers
• Plant managers, operations leaders and technical teams
• Personnel responsible for environmental monitoring, sanitation and microbiological control
• Facilities handling ready-to-eat products or operating under strict Listeria control requirements
• As an advanced module following basic hygiene and microbiology training

Learning Objectives:

On completion of the course you will:

• Understand the role of EMP within HACCP-based Food Safety Management Systems
• Be able to design a risk-based EMP aligned with EU and US regulatory expectations
• Understand zoning principles and how to define sampling strategies based on risk
• Identify high-risk areas and environmental contamination routes
• Define effective corrective actions and escalation protocols
• Understand how to demonstrate compliance with microbiological criteria and regulatory expectations

Course Accreditation:

This course has been certified by The CPD Certification Service