Which of the following is a key component of HACCP?

The correct answer is establishing critical control points, which is one of the essential elements of the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) system. This system is designed to identify and manage food safety hazards by identifying specific points in the food production process where hazards could occur and establishing controls to eliminate or reduce these hazards to an acceptable level.

Establishing critical control points involves determining the stages in the food preparation and handling process that are crucial for maintaining food safety, such as cooking, cooling, and holding temperatures. By doing so, food managers can implement measures that ensure safety, such as monitoring processes and setting limits for safe food handling.

While identifying potential allergens, conducting routine inspections, and following ingredient-specific recipes are important aspects of food safety and management practices, they do not directly correlate to the core function of HACCP, which specifically focuses on hazard analysis and control points. Each of these other choices contributes to an overall food safety program, but they do not represent the fundamental structure of HACCP like establishing critical control points does.