FSSC 22000 – Food Safety Management Certification Scheme

FSSC 22000 was developed and managed by Foundation FSSC 22000. FSSC 22000 provides a rigorous system to manage food safety risks and provide safe products for use by companies in the food industry. FSSC 22000 was given full recognition by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI). Due to this, FSSC 22000 is recognized and accepted globally/ worldwide by food manufacturers and retailers.

FSSC 22000 system uses a management systems approach to food safety - ISO 22000 for the management system requirements and ISO Technical Standards (for prerequisite program requirements). The prerequisite program required is dependent on your industry:

• ISO/TS 22002-1: Food Processing
• ISO/TS 22002-2: Catering
• ISO/TS 22002-3: Farming
• ISO/TS 22002-4 Food Packaging Manufacturing

Kindly note that as part of FSSC 22000 requirements, the unannounced audit is compulsory for every certification cycle. Kindly note that for unannounced audits, it will be set between 8 – 12 months after the previous audit, and:

1. The site shall not be notified in advance of the date and the audit plan shall not be shared until the opening meeting;
2. The unannounced audit will take place during regular operational working hours;
3. Blackout days may be agreed upon in advance;
4. The audit will start with an inspection of the production facilities commencing within one (1) hour after the auditor’s arrival;
5.  All scheme requirements shall be assessed and if there are parts of the audit plan (inclusive of off-site activities, off-site storage, warehouses, and distribution facilities) that cannot be audited and announced follow-up audit shall be conducted within four (4) weeks from the unannounced audit date;
6. The certification body may decide which surveillance audits to be chosen as an unannounced audit; and
7. If the client organization refuses to participate in the unannounced audit, its certification may be suspended immediately, and the certification body shall withdraw its certificate if the unannounced audit is not conducted within a 6-month timeframe from the date of refusal. 
   

To find out more about FSSC 22000 Version 5 certification, please do not hesitate to contact our Sales Department at via phone at 6299 9001 ext 1 or via email at certints@singnet.com.sg. 

Upgrade from FSSC 22000 V4.1 to FSSC 22000 V5

The Foundation FSSC 22000 published the new scheme FSSC 22000 V5 in May 2019. Audits against FSSC 22000 V4.1 are only allowed until 31 December 2019. Kindly note that upgrade audits against FSSC 22000 V5 scheme requirements shall be conducted between 1 January 2020 and 31 December 2020.

Upgrade audits (surveillance and recertification) will be conducted announced unless the client organization indicates explicitly the wish for an unannounced upgrade audit. 

The main reasons for the changes in FSSC 22000 V5 are:

• Publication of ISO 22000:2018 standard;
• Inclusion of the Board of Stakeholders list decisions;
• Compliance with GFSI requirements; and
• Continual improvement process.
  

For your information, the key changes are:

• Alignment with ISO High-Level Structure (HLS);
• Introduction of new clauses for the systematic determination and monitoring of business context and needs & expectations of interest parties;
• Strengthened emphasis on leadership and management commitment;
• Emphasis on risk management;
• Inclusion of suppliers’ qualifications and monitoring of relevant services;
• Labeling of all applicable food safety (including allergens) statutory and regulatory requirements; etc

All compliance audits and assessments from April 1, 2021, are required to be conducted against the revised version of the FSSC Scheme requirements.

To find out more about the revisions, we encourage you to consult the new 5.1 version of the FSSC Scheme standard which is available on the FSSC website, using the following link: FSSC 22000 Scheme Version 5.1