Quality is achieved by doing the right thing right, the first (and every) time.
A cherishing journey of over 25 years in the food industry aided me in developing a passion for flavour in a safe and sustainable environment. A world without spices and food ingredients cannot be imagined. Therefore, the basic need to procure and process these precious gifts of nature in a sustainable and ethical manner, where food safety and quality culture is a way of life.
How can we have an approach towards being First Time Right …
There are many standards available for Food Safety Management Systems accepted globally. BRCGS Food Safety, FSSC 22000, ISO 22000, SQF 2000 and few more. Most of the requirements are common across these standards and all cover HACCP Food Safety Plan.
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- First, select a standard you would want to implement. This is a decision mainly based on the demographic area of the sale of your products and the preference of the customer base. Understanding these requirements are key factors in further strategies and planning of the workings in the organisation.
- Appoint a competent Consultant and Trainer, who is well versed with all the requirements of the particular standard. He should be competent in conducting a thorough gap analysis and further come up with an efficient plan to close the identified gaps.
- Forming a multi-disciplinary team with members responsible for Quality Assurance, Technical Management, Production & Operations, Maintenance and other relevant functions, should be the next step for effective working. This team should commit to an action plan with time line for closing the gaps identified.
- Conduct an effective Internal Audit to evaluate readiness for FSMS Certification. Pre-Assessment Audit is also a very effective tool to evaluate your entire food safety system.
- This paves way to another important aspect, selection of a reputed Certification Body. Once the selection process is complete, perform certification audit and follow up to ensure that any non-conformities raised have been effectively closed within the timeline.
- Effective implementation of a Food Safety Management System shall ensure that all actions are performed with a focus to be first time right.
Nayan Maskai