What information to include on an Approved Supplier List?

Hi all.

Can anyone tell me what sort of information they include in their Approved Supplier List?

We have a lot of raw materials with Certifications such as Organic & Kosher, so I am also wondering if I separate this information out from the Approved Supplier List.

Thanks

We include product, contact info, approval date, review date, certification. It's a source of information for our purchasing people as well as a live document for audit. Basically, include whatever you need to make it useful, and keep it up to date. Once it's out of date, you'll probably find it's not used anymore.

Rellie, where I work we have a new vendor packet we send out.  I have just been audited by NSF (for SQF certification) as well as numerous other audits and what I have been doing has satisfied the auditors.  This is not to say that what I do is the only way because it certainly is not, but we request a certificate of insurance, certificate of compliance (HACCP), diversity statement, a copy of their latest 3rd party audit or inspection (if they have no 3rd party audits I would ask for a copy of their latest inspection by FDA), a hold harmless agreement, and a vendor quality information sheet which requests their FDA Bioterrorism Number, whether they have documented GMP's, traceability and recall programs, HACCP plans, etc.  Hope this helps!  Tad

Hi Rellie

I've attached a spreadsheet that I used recently to keep track of my supplier review.  In addition to document requests, I created a survey on Survey Monkey to send out and solicit responses. The survey included many of the elements that others have posted -- Questions about training, QA organization, allergens, etc.

If the supplier has a GFSI certificate, I ask for that - and the survey is shorter.  As QA people, we all know how tedious filling out numerous surveys can be!

Hi,

I would include a risk assessment for approval and a list of products that you purchase (e.g. ingredients, sanitizers, building materials, food contact packaging materials, or other products that may be regulated) and have a product specification that you require of your suppliers.

For example, a Letter of No Objection is required for sanitizers on food contact surfaces in Canada. Indicate that the letter is a requirement, and list the different types of sanitizers that are acceptable (e.g. Health Canada guidelines) and make sure your supplier adheres to these requirements.

Then scorecard your suppliers for cost, quality and meeting your requirements.

Thanks.

Hi rellie,

Which FS standard, if any ?

This may sound counterintuitive, but all you need on an approved supplier list is a list of approved suppliers.

All the above suggestions are worthy, and I have seen all, less and more on lists of suppliers. 

How you determined they are approved, what documentation you require, how often you poke your suppliers for updates on their required documentation, etc., can be in your supplier approval policy.

Do you really need a spreadsheet with all that info? Maybe, if your policy or standard require it or you have the free time to do nothing more than maintain a huge database or spreadsheet.

Why would you want to go to that effort though? If you have a policy that states what requirements there are for approved suppliers, certainly you would have that information on hand, right?

Why not have a simple list of approved suppliers, and if challenged by an auditor, produce the necessary documentation?

You can have a 400 column spreadsheet that lists a whole bunch of data, but as an auditor, I'd look at that and say "OK, show me the COA's you say you have, show me the Kosher Certs you have, and show me the most recent spec you have for that ingredient.

Point being, I understand the attraction of the "all inclusive Approved Supplier List", but it's one of those QA things that get out of control and tend to be more complicated than it needs to be.

Marshall

For simplicity sake, I do not believe there is a requirement in any GFSI scheme that specifically states "Site shall maintain a spreadsheet or other document that lists all possible permutations of how suppliers are approved, what documents are required, and what audits are required in order to become approved suppliers".

Marshall