Better Standards for Safer Food:

The safeguarding of quality standards is not a subject which is only restricted to food production as such. One must make the same claim on all manufacturers and distributors involved in contributing to the chain of value creation. These are the manufacturers of additives, of packing material and packing as well as the manufacturers of machines (which are used for food production) and all service providers in the framework of the food chain (logistics and transport companies, cleaning companies, pest control, air conditioning and water supply, refrigeration plant etc.). Even the supervisory authorities must be included in the consideration of a global food safety concept. Only in this way will transparency from the producers up to the consumers be guaranteed.

The main responsibility for food safety lies with the internal operational self-checking. For its implementation the companies must lay down principles which are reflected in quality management systems.

Food safety standards

The term food safety comprises more than hygienically unobjectionable food. Being free of genetic engineering and of allergens as well as comprehensive informative labeling also are to ensure safe consumption. Then there are market requirements such as BIO, ECO or origin-related productions whose labellings are controlled by the authorities. The food industry and trade are developing standards for food safety with the objective of strengthening consumer confidence in the products and of legally safeguarding themselves as manufacturers or distributors. The standards or quality seals are meant to bring about greater transparency along the food supply chain.

The multitude of standards however means that food producers (and parallel firms in the service sector) often have to comply with different requirements. Hardly any of the standard setters will accept alternatives. This not only means more costs but also more time expenditure and with it constant unrest and sometimes even uncertainty amongst the staff in the company.

At present there are more than 20 different standards in the food area. Only a few insiders are able to keep track in this uncontrolled growth of specifications.

Legal situation

During the last 10 years the legal basis for entrepreneurs in the fodder and food industry has changed. The new EU regulations (Reg (EC) No 178/2002, 852/2004, 853/2004, 854/2004 and 882/2004) have put the food laws on a new basis. The implementation of these regulations in Austria is governed by the Lebensmittelsicherheits- und Verbraucherschutzgesetz (LMSVG) BGBl. I No 13/2006.

The following changes take effect

The individual responsibility of the entrepreneurs is identified as an important element for safeguarding food safety in the basic Reg (EC) No 178/2002 (“General Food Law“). The application of the principles of hazard analysis and the monitoring of critical control points are essential practice elements.

Codex Alimentarius

The Codex Alimentarius is a common institution of FAO/ WHO. Its objective and task is to protect the consumers’ health and to ensure fair trade practices in the international food trade. For this purpose internationally recognized standards for food in consistent form are issued. These are becoming more important worldwide.

Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI)

Decision makers in international retail companies came to the conclusion that

In May 2000 the GFSI was set up, which is run by the CIES (Comité International d’ Entreprises à Succursales – The Food Business Forum). This initiative is based on the recognition that food safety is no topic of competition.In the GFSI Guidance Document Version 4 general conditions and benchmarks for food safety are described. The document is considered as a yardstick for the approval of food standards.

Standards and norms

HACCP is a concept of risk management and represents a tool which is used within the framework of the quality and safety management of a company in the food industry. The system refers to the production process. With it health hazards for the consumer are identified, assessed and methods for mastering them are developed. Precautionary measures are established and their observance documented. HACCP is described in the FAO/WHO Codex Alimentarius and represents an instrument of hazard control which is being used worldwide.

This is the only international standard which came into effect in 2005. It is supplemented by ISO 22004 which is a manual for its application. The objective of ISO 22000:2005 is to assess food safety as a management system in the company. HACCP and the Good Hygiene Practice are crucial points for this. Certification is not restricted to food producers only. Since about half of all the food is packed (which is also taken into account by corresponding EU regulations, for example Reg (EC) No 1935/2004 or 2023/2006), the standard also gives the manufacturers of packing material the possibility of safeguarding themselves through certification.

Other potential users are producers of additives, the manufacturers of machines, service providers along the food chain such as logistics and transport companies, cleaning companies or provisioners (communal feeding, restaurant chains, catering etc.). The standard is in conformity with the standards IFS and BRC (British Retail Consortium). It requires company-specific measures as part of the preventive programmes (PRP´s = prerequisite programs) for meeting the Good Hygiene Practice and as part of the HACCP system for mastering the CCPs (Critical Control Point). Both areas are combined in a superior structured management system whose aim is food safety. This standard is becoming more important and aims at the harmonization of the standards worldwide.

The IFS was developed by German retailers for checking and auditing store brand producers in the food industry on the basis of the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI). The product standard can be used directly for all production stages (after agriculture) in food production. ‚A core statement is the safeguarding and documentation of the continued improvement process. The IFS allows retailers a benchmarking system for selecting suppliers. In summer 2007 the new Version 5 was launched. At present the IFS is required by all German retail companies working together in the Ausschuss für Lebensmittelrecht und Qualitätssicherung (Metro AG, Rewe, Edeka, Aldi, Markant, Lidl, inter alia). Since autumn 2003 French retailers too are participating. The aim is to introduce it all over Europe. 

The IFS logistics standard adopts the elements of the IFS standard applicable to transport companies, stores and distribution centres. Like with other certification standards, quality management (involvement of the top management), food safety and the necessary risk analysis are central elements from which the companies benefit. The IFS logistics standard is used mainly in Germany.

Perspective

Is is not to be expected that ISO 22000:2005 will replace the national, regional or industry-specific standards during the next years, since the retail trade still wants to hold on to the regulations developed by itself. The major difference of the standards at present on the market such as IFS and ISO 22000:2005 lies in their orientation.

Whilst the trade associations want to continue supporting the IAF Guide 65, a product certification, and thus hold on to standards like IFS, ISO 22000:2005 according to the IAF Guide 62 is a system certification. For the time being ISO 22000:2005 will therefore gain importance in those industries in which national standards are not required and offers in particular suppliers and partners of the food industry and service providers the possibility to safeguard themselves through an independent (self-) check. The standard is already important in international goods traffic since national standards are unknown outside the EU borders. ISO 22000:2005 is a good option today already for companies along the food chain which export to the USA, Israel, Japan or Australia.

Author: Dipl.-Ing. Maria Panuschka