BRC - Packaging Material Distance from Walls?
I was told that there was an 18" minimum for the distance from walls to packaging material (food contact) but was unable to find anything of the sort in the BRC 7 manual. Does anybody have any insight on if this is an actual regulation or if the thought is that the area behind just needs to be cleaned and prove to be able to clean for the audits? Also, all boxes and other materials used in packaging needs to be up off the ground correct? Does a sheet of cardboard work or does it need to be pallets?
Thanks
I've yet to meet a BRC auditor who has brought a tape measure (just as well, as it would be confiscated before entering the factory...) but in general they'd expect sufficient gap to be able to inspect, clean, monitor for potential pest activity etc - most auditors seem to use a rule of thumb that if a person can fit into the gap to do the inspection then it's sufficient.
Some sites use painted lines on the floor, low metal barriers or similar so everyone knows how close pallets are allowed to be placed.
You'd need to risk-assess the question of storage on the floor, but I'd expect most things to be on some sort of pallet / raised racking or similar. A sheet of cardboard isn't particularly impervious so not going to give you the best separation ;)
I have not encountered any auditor (yet) who brings a measuring tape to inspect a gap of 18" and nothing that i have noticed in the BRC manual, however, clause 4.15.1 just states about storing material away from the floor and walls.
IMO this was more emphasized by AIB standards.
Please see previous discussion on this topic, that might help:
Thanks guys, good to know!
Hello,
If you have the possibility to follow such guidelines, then it's worth it. You will win in hygiene, because it will be possible to inspect and to easily clean the places which were unreachable before.
Kind regards,
Gerard Heerkens
The guidance coming basically from non-binding requirements and in some documents, it ranges from 6-18 inches away from the wall. Ultimately, again, this principle can be summarized by "what you can see, you can inspect, then you can clean".