LONDON, 2015-1-8 — /EPR Retail News/ — The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has published the seventh issue of its internationally recognised BRC Global Standard for Food Safety on 7 January 2015, and audits against Issue 7 will begin in July 2015.
The BRC Global Standards are internationally recognised as the market leaders setting the benchmark for good manufacturing practices in food, packaging, storage and distribution, agents and brokers, and consumer products. Certification enables customers to have confidence in their suppliers, and helps suppliers by allowing them to show they are maintaining high standards of safety, quality and legal compliance.
What’s new in Issue 7?
The development of Issue 7 followed a wide consultation to understand stakeholders’ requirements, and a review of emerging issues in the food industry. The information has been developed and reviewed by working groups made up of international stakeholders representing food manufacturers, retailers, food service companies, certification bodies and independent technical experts.
The focus of attention for Issue 7 has been:
• continuing to ensure consistency of the audit process
• providing a Standard with the flexibility to include additional voluntary modules to reduce the audit burden
• encouraging sites to put systems in place to reduce their exposure to fraud • encouraging greater transparency and traceability in the supply chain
• encouraging adoption of the Standard as a means of improving food safety in small sites and facilities where processes are still in development.
The requirements of Issue 7 of the Standard are an evolution from previous issues, with a continued emphasis on management commitment, a Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP)-based food safety programme and supporting quality management system.
The objective has been to direct the focus of the audit towards the implementation of good manufacturing practices within the production areas with increased emphasis on areas which have traditionally resulted in recalls and withdrawals (e.g. label and packing management).
David Brackston BRC Global Standards Technical Director, said: “The development of Issue 7 has been based on the values of the previous issues while ensuring that the update reflects the latest best practices. The consultation with the users of the Standard set the main focus for the rewrite which was to reduce the need for multiple audits and encourage consistency of the audit process; we believe the working groups have achieved this aim.”
The BRC Global Standard for Food Safety Issue 7 will be available on BRC Participate, along with the Interpretation Guideline and additional supporting publications. Recently launched, BRC Participate offers immediate access to all documents relevant to a particular Standard, linking them clause by clause. Printed copies and PDF downloads are also available for purchase from the BRC Bookshop.
Notes to Editors:
About BRC Global Standards
BRC Global Standards are the world’s biggest provider of safety and quality standards programmes for food manufacture, packaging, storage, and distribution. BRC Global Standards are generated with the help of technical specialists, retailers, manufacturers and certification bodies from around the world, so everything is based on practicality, rigour and clarity.
The BRC Global Standards certification scheme offer comprehensive support to help new and established businesses to achieve and maintain their quality and safety aims.
For more information please visit www.brcglobalstandards.com
Media Contacts: BRC Press Office +44 (0)20 7854 8924 / +44 (0)7921 605544