IFSQN Official Blog

It is common knowledge that food industry sees a high rate of employee turnover – both in the food service sector which sees up to 100% annual turnover1 , or manufacturing where labor shortages abound2 . This may give some employers pause when asked “do you really know the employees in your facility?” While in general, close scrutiny and quality assurance...

Why is the HACCP plan the food safety system for excellence?  For at least 50 years, HACCP has been the main protocol proven to adequately manage and understand food safety. When a recall or an intoxication happens, most of the times the root cause analysis was due to poor prerequisites implementation, rather than to an inadequate HACCP design. ...

A warm hello to all members of the IFSQN community wherever you are in the world. Once again, I’m dressed in my Santa outfit and that can only mean one thing IT’S CHRISTMAS!!! Today we’ll be winding down for a much-needed rest and to celebrate with friends and family. Of course, the forums will still be open, but it may be a little quieter than usual...

For those of you who do not live in Spain here is the background. In August this year, Spain had a Listeria monocytogenes recall in thermal treated pork meat. This outbreak resulted in at least 3 pregnant women had to abort, at least two elderly people died, and more than 250 people were hospitalized. The product that they had consumed was a refrigerated...

Most people would agree that electric cars are more environmentally-friendly than normal cars, but what if suddenly the traffic-lights didn’t apply for electric cars and they didn’t have to stop when the light turns red? Would people be comfortable driving in the traffic then? As a food safety auditor with more than 20 years in the industry, this is...

Why are customer complaint programs so essential in today’s food industry? While it is always better to catch and prevent hazards in-house than to deal with customer backlash later (or even find yourself sorting out a recall), most food professionals find that complaints are unavoidable. Whether your “customer” is the actual consumer or a client company,...

I work as a food safety auditor since more than 20 years. I started my career in Latin-America, and for the last 10 years I work in Europe. I have a scientific background with a PhD in Chemistry and over the years I worked with most standards and categories in the food industry. As a reader of IFSQN you are probably an auditee which means that you are on...

Taking place:  
26 Jul 2019 - 2:00 PM - 5:00 PM (UK Time Zone), 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM Eastern 
Over and over again out industry faces food safety incidents that, in hindsight, were 100% preventable. This occurs in organizations certified to high level standards which include an in-depth HACCP program. 
Root cause analysis most often uncovers...

As a consultant, I am often asked “what is the most important document I need to have?” Some will say “they are all important”, some will say “HACCP, is the most important”. I could argue that the Food Safety Plan (FSP) is now your most important document for any Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) certification. The FSP or in some cases “The Human Rule”...

As countries all over the world are pushing for stricter regulations on food products and food systems are becoming increasingly globalized, a noticeable trend has come to the forefront of new criteria for auditing. As many in the industry have noticed, food safety auditors are asking facilities to perform progressively more demanding traceability drills....