Integrating statistical process control to monitor and improve carcasses quality in a poultry slaughterhouse implementing a HACCP system

In meat slaughterhouses, the enumeration of certain microorganisms as microbiological quality indicators is very important for verifying effectiveness of the Good Hygiene Practices (GHP) and Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP) systems. Microbiological testing of final products as part of the HACCP verifying process may provide information that a process is in control. The aim of this work was to exploit the data from a poultry slaughterhouse implementing HACCP and demonstrate an alternative approach to the conventional statistical analysis using the principles of the Six Sigma quality. The data collected on Total Viable, Total Coliforms and Staphylococcus aureus counts were used to construct control charts (X bar–R control chart) and perform process capability analysis. Based on X bar–R control charts, the process was in a statistical control state but this before its automation was not capable since process capability and process performance indices were below 1.00, indicating the production of poultry carcasses with poor microbiological quality. After process automation, the indices were much higher than 2.00, indicating that the process was capable of producing poultry carcasses within the specification limits.