With the increased focus on food safety, the 1-day third-party safety and quality audits of the past are now being replaced by multiple-day accredited third-party food safety certification audits with independent oversight from an accreditation body. You may have heard acronyms such as SQF (Safe Quality Food), ISO 22000 or BRC (British Retail Consortium). These are all examples of third-party food safety management system standards.

Undoubtedly, this change has made some companies question the difference and wonder if the outcome of the new accredited certification audit process is worth the time, energy and money. The answer is undeniable YES.

The single day audits of the past had a prescribed agenda that stated the “expectations” for the review. These audits were snapshots of the specific day and, depending upon the auditor’s experience, generally only dealt with surface details to determine if the facility met the “expectation.” Each facility may have had many programs that were identified and observed during the audit, including the records, which were reviewed as an indicator of quality of documentation. Unfortunately, the depth and detail examined was dependent upon the extent of time allotted for the audit.

As we embark on newer technologies and stronger requirements for food safety in the global market, the approach to auditing has evolved and is being replaced with stricter guidelines and requirements. These requirements include certification by an accredited third-party certification body with independent oversight to one of the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI)-approved food safety management system standards.

Accredited third-party certification with independent oversight means the certification body is held to stringent requirements by an accreditation body to ensure impartiality, lack of conflict and competency. The competency requirements for auditors include up to requiring a B.Sc. in Food Science and 10 years of industry experience in each food category that they audit. Oversight from an independent accreditation body provides assurance that the audits are performed in conformance to internationally recognized and accepted standards. Third-party certification by an accredited certification body with independent oversight creates the ultimate confidence for end users—whether it is for public or privately held companies.

Phases of Auditing
What about the actual audit? During an accredited food safety certification audit, many of the same items are still reviewed, but in a different manner with greater detail and accountability across the entire organization. This process includes a two-phased approach.

The first phase, known as the desk audit (or commonly called a document review), includes a review of the company’s programs from a document perspective. This review is typically conducted off-site. (Remember, all auditors and certification body employees sign confidentiality agreements allowing peace of mind when sending your documents off-site.) The desk audit provides the auditor with the freedom to concentrate on the written words and evaluate the programs based on the adequacy of the program, the completeness and thoroughness of the document and the structure to control whatever measures the document identifies. This process is a requirement in the code or standard, and auditors are trained on the process in order to ensure better uniformity. The ability to commit time to the desk audit allows for a more in-depth analysis of the program content to identify inadequacies that may have food safety implications. All major non-conformances (findings) from the desk audit must be addressed before phase two can occur.

Phase two, known as the certification audit, occurs later (typically 30 to 60 days after the desk audit) and includes a facility-style audit. The accredited third-party food safety certification audits require an auditor to have clearly defined food safety knowledge to go beyond simply identifying the existence of a program to evaluating the content of the program. The result is a more detailed and thorough audit. In the previous single day audits, the ability for the auditor to focus on the details was often inhibited by time constraints.

During phase two, an onsite review of the facility and records is conducted. As a reminder, phase one is a review of the documents, and phase two confirms the organization is doing what they say they are doing in their documents. This audit is conducted in a format very similar to the review style afforded by the single-day audit. However, the most significant difference is the time required to evaluate a facility and records is more than double the one-day review audits. Generally, the direction is that 75% of the audit time should be spent evaluating the facility and records. Other key requirements for the facility evaluation is for auditors to determine the knowledge level (competency) of the employees, their understanding of food safety principles and the observation of the performance of the employee based on programs implemented in the facility. While some observation was performed in prior audits, the process now moves to interviews and questioning of employees to determine the level of knowledge to which the plant has trained the employees and the understanding and competencies of the individuals performing duties within the food safety programs. This major change from prior auditing adds significant value to the process and helps provide a more robust, effective food safety system. In addition, the employees often become aware of problems in operations because of their familiarity with the controls, procedures and processes. It is important that they be trained to understand and be able to communicate their level of knowledge to the auditor.

Another basic difference in these audits is the requirement to validate and verify programs are in place to support the food safety initiatives. Regulatory events have led to the requirement to ensure a company’s food safety program is effective in controlling issues and, if followed, will reduce or eliminate issues to an acceptable level. The process also includes a review of prerequisite support programs to ensure they meet their intended purpose and are implemented and maintained, thus providing the support intended. (An example of a pre-requisite program is pest control.) Accredited, third-party food safety certification auditing procedures study the various programs to verify that they meet the support role and are followed throughout the data they generate.

The depth of review of the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) plans also includes a review of all supporting documents and, based on the auditor knowledge and training, evaluation of the adequacy of the principles of the HACCP methodology.

A key factor behind accredited third-party food safety certification audits is the focus on continuous improvement. The audits help identify nonconformities, which are processes that fail to conform to the requirements of the standard. Nonconformities were identified in the previous style audits, but there was no accountability to ensure the nonconformity was addressed and corrected. With accredited third-party food safety audits, it is a requirement that all nonconformities be addressed and corrected before certification is issued. This forces companies to establish formalized corrective action, preventive action and continuous improvement processes. It also helps ensure a company’s food safety management system is robust and effective, thus increasing consumer confidence and safety.

Accredited third-party food safety auditing also provides for global assurances that products desired for global marketing have met the requirements of foreign countries based on specifications for the countries of destination.

To recap, there are many new requirements in accredited third-party food safety certification audits. However, the majority of the elements have always been reviewed in second party and the previous type of third-party audits. It is the depth of the audit and some specific techniques that are new and help strengthen the auditing process.

If your facility used the single day audits to benchmark and measure the success of your performance, then approximately 80% of the material previously reviewed will be similar. The difference is that review process would have only been roughly 30% the depth as the accredited third-party food safety certification audits. The standards used are specific and easily outlined to create the structure needed to develop the system and establish the food safety management systems manual.

As the global market continues to expand and the focus on food safety strengthens, the mandate for stronger verification through third-party food safety certification auditing will grow. The result will be more robust, effective food safety processes and management systems, a safer food supply and increased consumer confidence, which all translates into increased sales!

So, is it worth the time, energy and money? Absolutely! Nothing is worth putting the global food chain and consumers at risk. Show your commitment and dedication to your customers and food safety with accredited third-party food safety certification audits with independent oversight. They are internationally accepted and proven to be an effective answer to food safety.

William Rannells, DVM, is a certified Lead Auditor for EAGLE Food Registrations Inc., where he utilizes a process approach for auditing and has over 30 years of experience in operations pertaining to food processing from harvest through transportation. He worked slaughter and process floors for 30 years as a regulatory official and for the past 10 years in corporate industry as a quality manager, consultant and food safety director in large production operations. He has been involved in audits of production from ingredient to finished goods and from raw products through transportation, storage and packaging. He holds a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from The Ohio State University and frequently serves as a guest lecturer for The Ohio State University. He holds certification for PAACO, FPA, HACCP Facilitator and Advanced HACCP. He can be contacted at William.rannells@eagleregistrations.com.