IFS Food · Process certification
IFS Food. Food safety across the entire supply chain
The IFS Food is a GFSI-recognised standard for assessing product and process conformity in the production and processing of food.
Overview
What is it about?
The International Featured Standard (IFS) Food is a globally recognised standard for auditing companies that manufacture food or pack loose products. It was developed by German and French retail associations and is recognised as a benchmark by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI). Its aim is to ensure a consistent, verifiable level of food safety and product quality along the supply chain.
At the heart of the standard is a catalogue of requirements that combines a food safety and quality management system, good manufacturing practice (GMP) and a hazard analysis concept built on the HACCP principles of the Codex Alimentarius. The assessment is carried out via a scoring system with knock-out criteria; the result is expressed as a defined level of fulfilment (Foundation or Higher Level) and stored in a publicly accessible database.
Purpose & benefit
Certification provides retailers and buyers with objective evidence that food safety, legal conformity and defined product quality are systematically under control. In many retail chains, a valid IFS certificate is effectively a precondition for being listed.
What's included
- Responsibility of senior management and alignment of company policy with food safety
- Quality and food safety management system including HACCP study and hazard analysis
- Resource management: personal hygiene, training, workwear and sanitary facilities
- Production processes, product development, traceability and the handling of foreign bodies and allergens
- Measurements, analyses, improvements: complaint management, recall and withdrawal procedures, corrective actions
- Food defense and protection against intentional contamination or sabotage
For whom
Is this right for you?
The standard is aimed at manufacturers and processors of food as well as companies that pack loose goods. From raw material processing to the finished product. It is particularly relevant for suppliers to food retailers who produce private or retail brands.
Your benefits
What it does for you
- Recognised proof of conformity that is a precondition for access in many trading relationships
- Comparable assessment through a uniform scoring system and a publicly stored certificate
- Demonstrable fulfilment of food-law due diligence obligations and reduced liability risk
- Reduction of multiple audits through a single GFSI-recognised standard
Our role
How we work
- 1Planning and conducting certification audits to assess the conformity of your management system with the requirements of the standard
- 2Independent decision on certification based on the audit results
- 3Issuing and maintaining certificates
- 4Conducting surveillance and recertification audits in accordance with the applicable rules and defined time intervals
Impartiality
Consulting or support services for the introduction, implementation or improvement of management systems are not part of our activity as a certification body.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
How does the IFS Food differ from ISO 22000?
Both address food safety, but the IFS Food is GFSI-recognised and additionally assesses product quality and good manufacturing practice in detail via a scoring system with knock-out criteria. It is more widely established as a supplier requirement in European food retail.
Does intellcert support the implementation of the standard?
No. Our activities are strictly limited to independent certification services. Advisory, preparatory or supporting activities for implementing the requirements of the standard are not part of our activities as a certification body.
Your request
What would IFS Food cost for you?
Simply request a non-binding quote, quickly and directly.