Is it required to have a gap audit before the real audit?

Is it required to have a third party "audit" prior to the BRC audit? Basically like a gap analysis?

Thank you for your help

Hi there,

There is no absolute requirement to carry out this 'assessment' prior to the audit but it is something the BRC standard states you should do. It does not need to be carried out by a third party and BRC provides a 'self assessment tool'.

Relevant quotes from the BRC standard:

1.2 SELF-ASSESSMENT OF COMPLIANCE WITH THE STANDARD
'The Standard should be read and understood and a preliminary self-assessment should be conducted by the company against the Standard to prepare for the audit. Any areas of non-conformity should be addressed by the site.
Further information, guidance and training to ensure compliance with the Standard, including a downloadable self-assessment tool, is available at www.brcglobalstandards.com.
An optional on-site pre-assessment may be carried out by the selected certification body in preparation for the audit to provide guidance to the site on the process of certification. It should be noted, however, that under the rules for accredited certification, consultancy cannot be provided during any pre-assessment offered by the certification body that will later undertake the certification audit.'

Regards,

Tony

Thank you. I appreciate your response. I come from the SQF background so switching to BRC and the language has been a bit confusing trying to separate the standards accordingly.