Edition 10 strengthens audit credibility, reinforces foundational food safety controls, and supports greater confidence in certification outcomes across the supply chain.
SQF Edition 10 has been delayed due to an extension in the GFSI benchmarking application timeline, which now runs through March 2026. The new edition emphasizes food safety culture, change management, and environmental monitoring, and it consolidates documentation requirements to create a more proactive and holistic approach to food safety.
Expanded Services Aim to Improve Certification Audit Readiness and Compliance with Global Food Safety Standards
Proprietary supplier audits can be beneficial in helping organizations benchmark competency against standard requirements. These audits, while not considered certifications, can be used to better understand the supplier base and build confidence across the supply chain.
Finalists were selected in the categories of SQF Auditing and SQF Practitioner Leadership
The Importance of Auditor Calibration
Food safety audits are critical for food and beverage operations and are critical in building a strong food safety culture. Whether preparing for a retail food safety audit or striving to meet scheme or standard audit requirements, auditor calibration can provide value to ensure auditors fully understand and abide by program rules. The authors describe how auditors can utilize auditor calibration to establish a stronger food safety culture and meet certification requirements.
FSSC 22000 has completed the GFSI Benchmarking process for Version 6 of the Scheme and achieved recognition against the GFSI Benchmarking Requirements v2020.
Maintaining the safety of the food we consume is complex and multi-faceted. Inspections and audits have become the backbone of our food industry’s quality control processes in preventing foodborne illnesses and ensuring the stringent regulatory measures are met. This article details the intricacies of the importance of inspections and audits, highlighting the procedure involved to reduce the consistency of recalls.
This paper compares U.S. food laws with GFSI standards, highlighting their respective strengths and weaknesses. U.S. food laws provide a legally enforceable, standardized framework that ensures consumer protection and public accountability. Conversely, GFSI standards offer flexibility, global recognition, and industry-driven innovation, albeit at higher costs and with less enforcement power. The U.S. food safety system, despite its complexity, delivers robust protection through comprehensive federal regulations. A balanced approach that integrates the strengths of both systems could optimize food safety, leveraging legal enforcement and global industry standards.
The GFSI Steering Committee has suspended recognition of certification programmes owned by the Equitable Food Initiaive until evidence of re-alignment to GFSI Benchmarking requirements v 2020 is provided by the Certification Programme Owner EFI. This suspension took effect on 7th June 2024.
