BRCGS Certification

Program summary

The popularity of plant-based food has been gathering momentum. The BRCGS Plant-Based Standard provides certainty for industry and consumers alike, with the on-pack trademark empowering consumers to make informed choices quickly and easily.

Certification is achieved by undertaking a third-party audit against Standard requirements by an accredited certification body. BRCGS rates certification bodies on their technical performance and efficiency in customer service.

The standards

The Standard applies only to the control of animal inputs in plant-based products, in manufacture, processing and packing of:

• Processed foods, both own brand and customer branded
• Ingredients for use by food service companies, catering companies, and food manufacturers
• Pet foods (GFSI benchmarked schemes only)
• Natural health products

The benefits

The BRCGS Plant-Based Standard is applicable to any food company involved in the production of plant-based food – which means any product which is free of material of animal origin. The Standard is:

• Achievable – Takes a common sense, risk-based approach, providing companies with a clear path towards certification
• Appropriate – The Standard is HACCP-based and incorporates claim management systems and internationally accepted best manufacturing practices.
• Brand Protection – The on-pack Plant-Based trademark will allow brands and products to differentiate themselves and empower consumers to make informed choices quickly and easily
• Cost effective – Certification reduces the need and expense of duplicate audits.
• Combined audits – Plant-Based audits may be conducted as a standalone or in combination with any GFSI certification audit.

Program summary

The popularity of plant-based food has been gathering momentum. The BRCGS Plant-Based Standard provides certainty for industry and consumers alike, with the on-pack trademark empowering consumers to make informed choices quickly and easily.

Certification is achieved by undertaking a third-party audit against Standard requirements by an accredited certification body. BRCGS rates certification bodies on their technical performance and efficiency in customer service.

The standards

The Standard applies only to the control of animal inputs in plant-based products, in manufacture, processing and packing of:

• Processed foods, both own brand and customer branded
• Ingredients for use by food service companies, catering companies, and food manufacturers
• Pet foods (GFSI benchmarked schemes only)
• Natural health products

The benefits

The BRCGS Plant-Based Standard is applicable to any food company involved in the production of plant-based food – which means any product which is free of material of animal origin. The Standard is:

• Achievable – Takes a common sense, risk-based approach, providing companies with a clear path towards certification
• Appropriate – The Standard is HACCP-based and incorporates claim management systems and internationally accepted best manufacturing practices.
• Brand Protection – The on-pack Plant-Based trademark will allow brands and products to differentiate themselves and empower consumers to make informed choices quickly and easily
• Cost effective – Certification reduces the need and expense of duplicate audits.
• Combined audits – Plant-Based audits may be conducted as a standalone or in combination with any GFSI certification audit.

Summary

BRCGS START! is an effective stepping stone to achieving full BRCGS Food Safety Certification.

Certification is achieved by undertaking a third-party audit against Standard requirements by an accredited certification body (CB). BRCGS rates CBs on their technical performance and efficiency in customer service. FoodChain ID Certification is a highly rated CB providing accredited BRCGS certification globally.

The Standard

Under BRCGS START!, companies may choose to be audited to either the Basic or Intermediate level.

Basic level
The requirements are designed to ensure legal compliance as a minimum and are equivalent to or exceed the requirements of the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) basic level.

Intermediate level
The requirements build upon legal compliance to include more detailed requirements, an expansion of the HACCP process and the development of a quality management system.

The START! Program is designed to encourage continual improvement and assist sites in developing their food safety systems to a point where they can achieve full certification. All the clauses at the Basic and Intermediate levels of the START! Program are the same as or closely derived from the clauses in the full BRCGS for Food Safety.

The Benefits

BRCGS START! provides small to medium food manufacturing business with the opportunity to appear on the BRCGS Directory.

The program:

• Provides a clearly defined audit and certification process operated in accordance with the requirements of accreditation.
• Uses auditors that meet the demanding competency requirements of BRCGS.
• Enables companies achieving basic and intermediate levels to appear in the publicly available part of the BRCGS Directory, thereby recognizing their achievements.
• Uses requirements based on the Standard, enabling the basic and intermediate levels to provide effective stepping stones towards full certification.
• Requires completion of corrective actions on any non-conformities before certification at the basic or intermediate level is awarded, thus reducing the need for customers to follow up on audit reports.

The Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) is U.S. legislation which provided the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) enhanced enforcement authority. FSMA established new food safety regulations for the growing, processing, manufacture, packing, storage, and distribution of domestic and imported food products. Since its enactment, FSMA rules were developed to outline the minimum requirements when producing, handling and/or distributing food under FDA regulatory authority for sale and consumption in the U.S.

Rules affecting produce growers, food manufacturers, foreign suppliers and businesses involved in the storage and distribution of food products include the following:

• Standards for the Growing, Harvesting, Packing, and Holding of Produce for Human Consumption
• Current Good Manufacturing Practice, Hazard Analysis, and Risk-Based Preventive Controls for Human Food
• Current Good Manufacturing Practice, Hazard Analysis, and Risk-Based Preventive Controls for Food for Animals
• Mitigation Strategies to Protect Food Against Intentional Adulteration
• Sanitary Transportation of Human and Animal Food
• Foreign Supplier Verification Programs for Importers of Food for Humans and Animals

Is your business affected by one or more of these rules? If so, accredited food safety certification to a GFSI-recognized standard is one way to get your operation on track for regulatory compliance.

How do I comply to FSMA?

Certification to FSMA Module (Food Safety Modernization Act) is available as an add on to your BRCGS audit with FoodChain ID Certification.

Does GFSI-recognized certification ensure compliance with the rules?

Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) recognized certification programs are based on private food safety standards rather than specific country legislation. GFSI-benchmarked standards are HACCP-based food safety management systems which align with many of the science and risk-based requirements of the FSMA.

Since publication of the final FSMA rules, many GFSI certification program owners (CPOs) conducted independent studies to demonstrate how their standard aligned with Preventive Controls regulation. In general, results of the analyses demonstrated close alignment between benchmarked standards and the regulation, with some CPOs developing additional modules and guidance documents to support certified companies in adapting their GFSI-recognized program to meet and exceed regulatory requirements.

In response to GFSI’s upgraded Benchmarking Requirements v7.0 document, recognized standards are further closing the gap between their programs and FSMA rules to support GFSI certified sites in implementing a comprehensive food safety management system which merges industry best practices and global food regulation.

I’m a foreign supplier, how does FSMA apply to me?

Foreign suppliers’ food safety management systems are verified through one of two ways with respect to the rules.

The first way is through a food manufacturer’s supply-chain program as required by subpart G of the Preventive Controls rule. Businesses subject to Preventive Controls requirements are responsible for establishing and implementing a risk-based supply-chain program to control identified hazards in raw materials and ingredients. The program requires the use of approved suppliers, application of material acceptance procedures and supplier verification activities to ensure that identified hazards are mitigated and prevented from entering the food supply chain.

The second way is through import requirements detailed in the Foreign Supplier Verification Program (FSVP). U.S. importers of record are required to conduct a hazard analysis for each type of imported food to identify significant food hazards as well as conduct a risk assessment to determine supplier fitness for the production of food which meets U.S. regulations. Depending upon the outcome of the hazard analysis and risk assessment, the importer is responsible for conducting one or more verification activities, which may include an on-site audit of the supplier’s operation to ensure regulatory compliance.

Tools for regulatory compliance

Regulatory compliance with country specific food legislation such as FSMA can seem overwhelming in a global supply chain. Fortunately, there are globally recognized and standardized systems and tools to help your operation stay ahead of the curve.

• For environmental monitoring and product testing, ensure analysis by an ISO 17025 accredited laboratory.
• For effective food safety management, certify to a GFSI-recognized program, which provides the framework for risk-based management of food hazards, fraud and security threats.
• For on-site supplier verification audits, ensure assessment by a qualified inspector or third-party auditor of an accredited certification body.

The additional modules published alongside the Global Standard for Food Safety, have been designed to reduce multiple audits by covering additional specific geographical or customer requirements and auditing them at the same time as the Global Standards audit.

The Meat Supply Chain Assurance Module has been developed in response to requests from the meat supply chain and its customers and was initiated by the British Meat Processors Association (BMPA) to reduce the audit burden on the meat sector.

Certification to this module in association with the Global Standards for Food Safety Issue is therefore designed to:

• demonstrate good management of the meat supply chain
• provide confidence to customers
• reduce the need for multiple audits of the supply chain
• reduce costs and audit time for meat processors
• ensure a consistent quality to meat supply chain auditing.

The benefit

The Food Safety Culture Assessment offers many benefits for manufacturers, specifiers and the wider industry. The assessment:

• Determines strengths and weaknesses in food safety capability
• Provides real insight into staff opinion, attitude, and behaviour
• Provides multi-site businesses with a benchmarking tool to compare sites to each other
• Reveals the ‘unseen’ culture that goes beyond the day of audit
• Complements the existing audit program with a behaviour-based approach
• Strengthens your reputation through a proactive approach to food safety culture
• Offers significant return for a low cost and hassle-free module
• Measures the impact of training, systems, and other initiatives
• Evaluates return on investment of budget and identifies the most important targets for resource allocation
• Develops supply chain awareness and supports site-specifier partnerships built on increased confidence

The process

Preparation: once registered, the site contact(s) will receive an email including details of how to launch the assessment.

Assessment: across the company, employees can complete the survey anonymously. It takes around 15-20 minutes to complete.

Reporting: the assessment generates a lot of valuable data; this data is distilled into a PDF report.

Improvement: once the site has received the report and reviewed their scores, they can identify next steps for improvement.

How do I achieve a good grade in BRCGS Culture Excellence Audit?

There are four key areas that your employees will be assessed on in the BRCGS Culture Excellence Module.

1) People – the people section of Culture Excellence reflects on staff attitudes and your investment in people. Empowerment, Reinforcement, Teamwork and Training are all key metrics in this section of BRC’s Culture Excellence.

2) Process – the process section of Culture Excellence reflects on how well staff know about the importance of production processes. Control, Coordination, Consistency and Systems are all key metrics in this section of BRC’s Culture Excellence.

3) Purpose – the purpose section of Culture Excellence reflects on how your staff view the purpose of their roles within your organization, and the purpose of your organization’s work as a whole. Vision, Values, Strategy and Objectives are all key metrics in the purpose section of BRC’s Culture Excellence.

4) Proactivity – the proactivity section of Culture Excellence reflects on how your staff perceive the company to be proactive in tackling potential issues, or embracing opportunities in the food industry. Awareness, Foresight, Change and Learning are all key metrics in the proactivity section of BRC’s Culture Excellence.