FSSC 22000 Food Safety System Certification scheme

The Foundation for Food Safety Certification has developed FSSC 22000, the ISO 22000 and PAS 220 certification scheme for food safety systems of food manufacturers. This development is supported by the Confederation of the Food and Drink Industries of the European Union (CIAA). The scheme is submitted to the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) to be benchmarked and approved.

The Foundation for Food Safety Certification has launched the website www.fssc22000.com. On this website you will find information of FSSC 22000, the ISO 22000 and PAS 220 certification scheme for food safety systems of food manufacturers. On short term the scheme documents will be available on the website.

FSSC 22000 contains a complete certification scheme for Food Safety Systems based on the food safety management standard ISO 22000: 2005 ‘Requirements for any organization in the food chain’ and the publicly available specification for Prerequisite programs on food safety for food manufacturing, BSI-PAS 220: 2008. The scheme is using existing standards for certification (ISO 22000, PAS 220 and ISO 22003) and the certification will be accredited under the standard ISO guide 65 (process certification). Manufacturers already certified against ISO 22000 will only need an additional review against the PAS 220 to meet this certification scheme.

The scheme is intended for the certification of manufacturing and processing of food ingredients and food products. The requirements and regulations of FSSC 22000 are described in four separate Parts:

Part I contains the requirements of the food safety system and guidance on how to apply for certification

Part II the requirements for providing certification, including the regulation for the CB’s and for the harmonization committee

Part III the requirements for providing accreditation including the regulation for the AB’s

Part IV the regulations for the Board of Stakeholders

The Foundation for Food Safety Certification retains the ownership and the copyright and the license agreements for certification bodies. Certification bodies wanting to apply for delivering certification audits against the scheme can contact the Foundation for further information.(ifsqn.com)