Though I too run boring, dry, low risk products, I see the value in GFSI certification, kinda...
We sell lots of products to larger retailers as well as to people who manufacture for national and international restaurant chains and they are requiring GFSI certification to be part of their supply chain. No cert, no sales.
That being said, it's nitpicking B.S. at times. Just read these forums and see experienced people in their fields trying to parse wacky clauses and write policy and procedure to cover their butts at audit time.
Do I REALLY think my maple syrup, honey, and olive oil are going to be economically adulterated? No, I don't. I've worked with the suppliers for some time and have been to their production facilities. I have letters and certificates and guarantees and all sorts of jazz, but NOW I have to do a "risk assessment" of all my ingredients and distribution items, rank them in terms of those I think are "high risk for food fraud", and have a validation plan to ensure the stuff I'm selling is actually the stuff I THINK I'm selling.
Because of a change in a clause in a GFSI scheme.
I love that they are called "Schemes". The verb definition of "scheme" fits from time to time: "make plans, especially in a devious way or with intent to do something illegal or wrong."
Thousands and thousands of dollars and thousands and thousands of man-hours to fit into a "plan" that it you aren't part of the "plan", you can't sell your goods to the majority of your market. And you have to pay every year, and the rules change regularly.
Sounds pretty much like a scheme to me.
I have to say "no" for the operation I work at, sorry to be the only guy to say no. I can see the value in gfsi for high risk product like meat, but we handle high volume, commodity, whole grains.
Boring, dry, low risk, minimal process grain.
GFSI in many, many ways is overkill, counter productive bureaucratic bull puckeys.
Have I learned a lot going after that GFSI certification? Yes.
Have I spent a lot of money going after that certification? Yes
Have we gained any customers? A few
Is my company GFSI certified? No
have companies not dealt with because of this? a few
Have we lost any customers not getting certified? No
was anybody willing to pay more because we were certified? No
If anybody who wants gfsi certification stopped doing business with us how much business would we lose? 2%, We can make it up else where.
Basic Haccp and prp's suffice.