IFS

IFS FOOD - FOOD QUALITY AND SAFETY AUDITING STANDARD

IFS FOOD

IFS Food is an international standard for assessing the conformity of products and processes with regard to food safety and quality. It applies to suppliers at all stages of food processing after agricultural production. IFS Food belongs to the IFS (International Featured Standards) group of standards.

The conformity assessment checklist complies with the benchmarking requirements of the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI), EU regulations and the US Food Act (FSMA). The requirements are related to the quality management system, the HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) system and detailed prerequisite programs, including GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice), GLP (Good Laboratory Practice) and GHP (Good Hygiene Practice). It includes a requirement for the development of a food safety culture.

In April 2023, version 8.0 of the IFS Food standard was published. What are the changes in the new version? The main changes have been made to align the standard with the new Codex Alimentarius, the criteria of the Global Food Safety Initiative GFSI 2020 and ISO 22003-2 for requirements for bodies carrying out the assessment and certification of products, processes and services, including the audit of the food safety system. The terminology used in the standard has been harmonised. There are some changes to the certification protocol, to the grading system, IFS Star status for unannounced audits has been introduced, there are new requirements introduced in the audit checklist, etc. 

IFS Food's structure covers key areas of business for establishing effective processes to ensure food safety:

1. Governance and Engagement – review of senior management's commitment to supporting the sustainability of food safety culture and quality assurance policy.
2. Food safety and quality management system – necessary to meet legal and food safety requirements, as well as customer specifications.
3. Resource management – management of human resources, working conditions, hygiene and sanitation to ensure the safety of products.
4. Operational processes – production of safe, quality products according to customer specifications.
5. Measurements, analyses and improvements – inspections, process validation and complaint management and corrective actions.

IFS Food places emphasis on the responsibility of senior management to establish and maintain a food safety culture within an organization. This includes providing the necessary resources.
The version expands the requirements to protect food along the food supply chain against intentional contamination by implementing action plans, risk assessments and employee training programs.
The standard contains allergen management requirements and requires proper separation, cleaning protocols and clear labeling of accurate ingredient lists and allergen declarations on product packaging.      IFS Food introduces environmental monitoring requirements – assessment and control of potential microbiological and physical hazards in production facilities. Regular monitoring, corrective actions and inspections are required to ensure the safety and quality of food products.                                            IFS Food also includes requirements to reduce and mitigate food fraud. It encourages companies to implement risk assessments and maintain traceability systems to prevent fraud in the supply chain.

Benefits of IFS Food
By sticking to IFS Food version 8, companies can reap numerous benefits. Standard helps organizations to:

• maintain the highest levels of food safety, building high consumer confidence in the products they buy and thus increasing sales;
• demonstrate a commitment to transparency, quality management and continuous improvement;
• proactively identify and mitigate potential risks through a risk-based approach and the increased involvement of senior management
• ensure regulatory compliance
• determine hazard control methods that are best suited to their unique conditions.
• improve their processes, reducing waste and costs associated with recalls, complaints or scrapped products and processing.