Let your Food Safety Management System do the Talking in 2022

Let your Food Safety Management System do the Talking in 2022

We’re back with a bang this week fellow Food Biters…

This week we’ve delved into our archive to find something really appropriate for this time of the year.  As things start to wind down (or spiral out of control 😁) it’s a good time to take stock of your Food Safety Management System.

Is your current food safety and quality management system adding value? It may be worth our while to define the meaning of “value” in this context.  According to the Merrium-Webster dictionary “value” is defined as:

Firstly, monetary worth implies that you will pay for an external certification audit and this should be market related.  More importantly though, is what you are getting in return and if the certification process is important to you, what is it really worth?

For any organisation to experience the true value of certification, they must understand the value of implementing a system which can reach its full potential as opposed to a system that hinges on window-dressing and ticking the boxes.  You do not have the true value of certification if internal audit systems, monitoring of CCPs, corrective actions, verification systems and non-conformance systems are “kick-started” before the audit and not implemented to add value to the organisation.

If a food safety management system is implemented with the aim of improving the business, rather than to satisfy an auditor, true value is experienced in the form of “peace of mind”.   Value is not creating extra work for staff, but rather integrating systems and standards into daily activities.

When food safety is part of the strategic vision of an organisation, a certification audit is seen as an opportunity to highlight risks in the business and to ensure improvement of both the system and the organisation.  In fact, audits are a welcome tool to manage risk and drive improvement.

If you see value as having zero non-conformances during the certification audits, then you are literally paying for nothing.  We have yet to meet an organisation who prides themselves on paying good money for no return on goods or services.  A certification audit is a service aimed at determining the level of conformance to a specified standard.  The level of conformance is usually demonstrated in the form of non-conformances which are identified, thus allowing the audited organisation to improve.  Zero recalls are still a better outcome than zero non-conformances and a value-adding certification audit can help to identify risks that, if not adequately managed, could trigger a recall.

Let’s get this straight, certification MUST add value. If you are doubting the value added through your current certification body, contact ProCert, our certification partner by e-mailing d.brandt@procert.ch.

For all things training-related, swing by our website or e-mail info@progress-exccellence.co.za with all your food safety, quality, environmental and health and safety training needs.

2 February – Validation, Monitoring & Verification Workshop – Paarl & Zoom

3 February – FSSC 22000 Version 6 V5.1 Conversion Workshop – Paarl & Zoom

7 – 9 February – BRCGS Food V8 Implementation Workshop – Paarl & Zoom

14 – 16 February – ISO 45001:2018 Implementation Workshop – Paarl & Zoom

23 – 24 February – SANS 10330 Implementation Workshop – Paarl & Zoom

21 – 22 February – Advanced Internal Audit Workshop – JHB, Paarl & Zoom

7 – 10 March – FSSC 22000 Version 6 V5.1 Implementation Workshop – JHB, Paarl & Zoom

14 March – Food Defence Workshop – JHB, Paarl & Zoom

15 March – Food Safety Culture Excellence Workshop – JHB, Paarl & Zoom

16 & 17 March – Introduction to Internal Auditing – Paarl & Zoom

 

Remember, food should never bite!