Why obtain BRC Accreditation?
Before looking at the tips for obtaining BRC accreditation, it is worth considering why have this accreditation at all? BRCGS (Brand Reputation Compliance Global Standard) produces a suite of widely recognised standards relating to different types of food producers. There is a food standard for manufacturers but also ones for storage, warehousing, and distributing food and product businesses. Packaging companies and businesses that act as agents and brokers for food or products also have their own safety standards. For a full list of BRCGS Standards look here.
Gaining safety standards can be a business-changing event. Passing and complying with a standard is often a business requirement before trading can begin with many retailers, foodservice organisations, etc. Complying with BRC proves legal requirements for food safety are in place, as well as, demonstrating industry best practices. Safety failure costs may decrease by mitigating risk with effective control measures in a tailored HACCP Plan.
Finally, accreditation gives improved business performance through continuous improvement by having root cause analysis and internal auditing procedures in place.
Overall, BRCGS accreditation helps a food or product business maintain current customers and attract new ones.
First Tip for obtaining BRCGS Accreditation
BRCGS is a major undertaking for any business. Standards are complex and contain a lot of technical information. Often, businesses do not have the skill it requires to prepare and pass an audit internally. Seeking outside expert support and guidance from a food safety consultant is advantageous because of their expert knowledge and experience. With this experience, they bring in skills that can allow the business to have maximum benefit from food safety compliance. They will guide a business throughout the process, mentoring staff, project managing, and beyond. A register of food safety professionals is available.
Resourcing
The second tip for obtaining BRCGS Accreditation is ensuring the correct levels of resourcing. A good food safety consultant carries out a Gap Analysis study of current food safety systems against the desired BRCGS standard. This report should contain a clear understanding of the levels of resources required to successfully achieve accreditation e.g. staffing, equipment, refurbishment of facilities, money, etc. It takes commitment and leadership. Therefore, the relationship between the business owner and food safety consultant has to be open and honest.
To help in the resourcing process and help to understand the commitment required to obtain a copy of the relevant BRCGS safety standard and go through each section.
Funding Tip Three…
Following on from resourcing challenge is grant funding could be available. Depending on geographic location, different types of grants may be available. Preparing for and passing BRC accreditation is often classed as a business improvement by many grant bodies, therefore, carry out some research into this.
A good food safety consultant can give some guidance in the application process and it is worth noting here that a grant funder may help with their fees.
Grant bodies and their remit can change frequently so it is worth seeking advice from local enterprise agencies or the national bodies, such as the Manufacturing Growth Programme.
Tip 4 for obtaining BRCGS Accreditation
A key part of BRCGS compliance is developing and implementing a food safety culture within the business. Therefore, forming an accreditation team is vital. Key staff, such as the Production Manager. Buying team, Transport or Quality Assurance Supervisor, etc all need to understand their roles and responsibilities in this process. A food safety consultant’s role here would be to mentor this team and help in the training of further staff. Understanding the complexity of the standard and importantly why certain tasks are essential e.g. accurate record keeping is fundamental to the success of the project. Compliance mentoring is an essential component of the accreditation process.
A food safety culture begins and ends with the attitudes and behaviour of the leadership team. Therefore, guidance from a consultant is valuable at this point.
Because the actual audit is stressful, it might be necessary for final preparations, if your consultant carries out a dummy audit a few weeks before the final actual audit. They can also be present on the actual audit day helping with challenging questions from the auditor, for example.
And Finally keeping BRC Accreditation
Passing a BRCGS audit is not an end in itself. Obtaining compliance is one thing but keeping it is another. Annual audits mean BRC accreditation is a live continuous process of maintaining a safe culture within a food or product business.
The challenge is to keep up with all regular tasks and to see continuous improvement in the safety culture. A food safety consultant helps to maintain that focus with regular reviews and internal audits. They can also advise when there are changes or updates to a safety standard and within the company e.g. new product ranges, staff changes, etc.
