Certification Speed SQF vs BRC vs ?
Once we have all our documentation in place and a few months of records, which standard is faster for certification?
It's really apples and oranges on this one. SQF has two audits - the first one you can call a desk audit, documentation audit, stage 1 etc, this audit is done either on-site or off-site as it relates to paperwork only. Normally there is a lag time of 30 days or so between the stage 1 audit and the certification audit. Back when I was conducting SQF audits I also had companies that had the audits back to back, one on a Monday followed by the certification audit starting on Tuesday. That can be damaging however if there are gaps. With BRC there is one visit. Both take about the same amount of time to generate a certificate. Both SQF and BRC have requirements of their CB's to issue certificates within a certain timeframe. Fast forwarding to today as a consultant it has been my experience that the auditor will tell you your score/grade after they have completed their on-site work and before they leave (that is subject of course to review), assuming that you passed and took minimal time to make any corrective actions it is normally about 30-50 days for receipt of a certificate. Most CB's will give score/grade confirmations prior to this should you have a customer that is chomping at the bit for the information.
That makes sense, doesn't sound too bad. We'll stick with SQF L2.
Appreciate the reply!