Upcoming changes to BSI HACCP/GMP criteria

While the new criteria is more detailed, much of the change is clarification of existing requirements so you should not see a dramatic increase in audit duration if any, and report writing times will remain the same. Additional focus has been given to several areas such as: allergen management and foreign material control as they are leading causes of issues. For those of you already certified to other food standards it is unlikely that any additional time, documentation or records will be required to meet these new requirements. 

It is important to note that the intention of the new criteria is not to raise more non-conformances but to ensure you have robust systems in place aligned to current applications of risk. The grace period between April and 1st July 2014 allows you time to make the necessary changes to your systems and, for audits performed during this time, auditors will identify observations where the food safety system does not meet the new criteria to assist you with the transition. Once this grace period is over, non-conformances will be raised in line with current processes of minor, major and critical.

One noteworthy change is that the frequency of visits will be determined by the outcome of your audits. Like GFSI (Global Food Safety Initiative) standards which grade or score the audit outcome, our new system will provide a rating that equates to annual or six monthly audit cycles. In the case a GFSI standard audit is being conducted at the same time as a BSI HACCP/GMP audit, the frequency will be calculated by the GFSI audit outcome.

For clients wanting to demonstrate they are “best in class” we are pleased to launch a new program, BSI HACCP/GMP Gold Certification. This program will feature six monthly unannounced audits.