The Global Standard for Food Safety was first developed in 1998 by the food service industry to enable suppliers to be audited by third party Certification Bodies against a single consistent standard, reducing duplication of effort and enabling the retail industry to focus activities on areas of competitive advantage. Built on the principles of clear risk based requirements, informative report format and auditor competence, the Standard has continued to develop and evolve with input from a wider base of international stakeholders including retailers, caterers, food manufacturers and Certification Bodies.

The Standard is closely managed by the BRC who license the use of the Standard to Certification Bodies who must be both accredited by their national Accreditation Body and abide by strict BRC requirements for auditor competency, reporting and performance.

The latest edition features a number of innovations, including:

* Optional unannounced audits have been introduced for companies gaining certification grade A or B

* More guidance on implementing HACCP based on Codex Alimentarius principles

* Greater emphasis on senior management demonstrating their commitment to the aim of achieving product quality and safety and to ensuring corrective action for non-conformities is undertaken

* Expanded sections on issues of major importance, such as allergens and identity preserved materials, laboratory management, and physical and chemical contamination control

* A more rigorous grading system for grades B, C and D has been introduced with a re-visit by the Certification Body required within 28 days to verify corrective actions for grade C as well as audit frequency reduced to 6 months

* Revision of product categories that focus on product technologies that are now cross referenced with fields of audit pertinent to auditor requirements

* A new section has been introduced on site security requiring controlled access and training of staff, secure storage of materials and registration and approval of premises.

Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI)

The Global Standard for Food Safety was the first standard to be approved by the GFSI (click here for information about GFSI) as part of their process for mutual recognition of food safety standards and continues to be the most widely used of the GFSI standards with over 10,000 certificated sites worldwide.

Benefits of the BRC Global Standards

* Comprehensive and focused on safety, legality and quality

* Clear and detailed requirements based on HACCP principles supported by documented systems

* Standardised reporting format providing information on how sites meet the requirements of the Standards

* Closure of all non-conformities identified at an audit with evidence included in the report before Certificates can be issued

* Complementary with existing quality management systems e.g. ISO and HACCP where these meet the requirements of the Standard