Approved supplier program
Hello!
How is everyone monitoring their suppliers? their performance?
We are a juice manufacturer and we annually pull samples of raw ingredients from approved suppliers and analyze them against both of ours and their specs.
IMO that is TOO much. Based off the SQF 9 code:
Verification of raw materials shall include certificates of conformance, certificates of analysis, or sampling, and testing. The verification frequency shall be identified by the site.
it says COCs, COAs or sampling and testing.
Would our usage of raw materials already be us verifying they send us the correct raw material?
What is everyone in a similar industry doing?
Edit: I mean its VERY time consuming to have to do this every year where we pull all raw material and test it. we are talking about over 50 ingredients that need to be sampled!
I work for fermented dairy and ice cream manufacturing. For both, I have same program: verification of suppliers by their GFSI, Kosher, Halal and Organic, where applicable, and requesting COAs for each lot of supplied materials. If my supplier doesn't have GFSI, I request either 3rd party audit report or send them a Supplier Questionnaire to complete. I send raw materials for testing only in case of issues (e.g. yeast or mold count, low fat or TS, etc.) Has been working fine for 10+ years.
I work for fermented dairy and ice cream manufacturing. For both, I have same program: verification of suppliers by their GFSI, Kosher, Halal and Organic, where applicable, and requesting COAs for each lot of supplied materials. If my supplier doesn't have GFSI, I request either 3rd party audit report or send them a Supplier Questionnaire to complete. I send raw materials for testing only in case of issues (e.g. yeast or mold count, low fat or TS, etc.) Has been working fine for 10+ years.
Based on what you said u do not sample raw material. You only do it when you you have issues. other than that you verify your suppliers with their certs and COAs.
Am I correct?
I work for fermented dairy and ice cream manufacturing. For both, I have same program: verification of suppliers by their GFSI, Kosher, Halal and Organic, where applicable, and requesting COAs for each lot of supplied materials. If my supplier doesn't have GFSI, I request either 3rd party audit report or send them a Supplier Questionnaire to complete. I send raw materials for testing only in case of issues (e.g. yeast or mold count, low fat or TS, etc.) Has been working fine for 10+ years.
Hi Olena,
IIRC you are working to FSSC22000 ? Can sometimes be relevant.
Just from memory of previous threads, SQF is a "stickler" for CoAs or "analysis" at reception.
Based on what you said u do not sample raw material. You only do it when you you have issues. other than that you verify your suppliers with their certs and COAs.
Am I correct?
Yes, that's correct. However, I'm with FSSC, not SQF - so, that'd make a difference. Let's see what SQF people say about their systems.
Food Scientist-
I have run SQF programs for 2 different employers in 2 separate industries. The first industry was rice. Rice is sold based on grades so yes we would pull a representative sample per load and check the quality based on what we purchased. The other raw material I would inspect was bags / film and take one to check against our spec sheet at time of receiving.
I don't have knowledge on juice or ingredients to juice but is any of it purchased based on grade? If my policy says I can only accept USDA Grade 1 the only way I could guarantee that is to pull a sample and check against the USDA standard. I guess it matters based on your product / likelihood of economically motivated adulteration (dilution / blend / fake origin or other claims that you purchase by). How long have you been with your suppliers and what issues have you had for your raw ingredients. If it is all low risk and you have a good history you might be able lessen the load by doing a certain percentage per year that way say in a 3 year period you have checked them all. Again the way I read the code is its based on risk and it is up to the site to control the frequency.
You seem to be referring to two different things.
1. verification that you are receiving what is expected. This is you COA, sampling and testing, etc.
2. Monitoring is usually evaluating a supplier over time. How do you ensure your supplier is performing once they have been approved. This could be things like # of rejected product, evaluating incoming temps / inspections, paperwork / coas received on time, final product flavor results, your annual testing, etc. fortunately SQF is more vague in this area than in the verification clause.
I did make orange juice (Pre SQF), so I understand your dilemma. While I usually would say COAs are a waste or paper, in your case receipt of a COA would be a simple way to meet the verification clause. then develop an on going monitoring program as you see fit.
I think COAs etc can provide some insight into supplier performance monitoring, but it's only one QMS interaction. This isn't based on any particular compliance standard, but I'd think about things like....
- Certification and grade for 3rd party audits (if a supplier goes from BRCGS AA to B, that can be a trendable performance indicator)
- Delivery conditions for goods received - temp on delivery, residual shelf life, absence of stowaways or evidence of tampering, absence of evidence of pest activity, vehicle cleanliness, late deliveries, quantity of material delivered relative to order quantity, etc
- Conformity of material received with its specification, based on inspection challenges, COAs, surveillance testing
- Customer complaints incurred, that are attributable to the supplier (e.g. complaint received because of a bone in a chicken pie, attributable to the chicken supplier)
- Then you've got customer services and technical services issues - if you request a specification or other technical document, how quickly does your supplier respond, and is their response satisfactory? Do your suppliers proactively provide COAs in advance of delivery, or do you frequently have to prompt them?
You can set your QMS up to give you quite a detailed analysis of supplier performance, it just depends what sort of data you're monitoring.
Hi TFS,
Edit: I mean its VERY time consuming to have to do this every year where we pull all raw material and test it. we are talking about over 50 ingredients that need to be sampled!.
I don't agree with yr intrinsic annual event but - Are all 50 results above perfectly acceptable ? If so this would surely justify a rotational schedule.
Many micro. labs would like to sample every incoming lot of raw material but it's simply logistically impossible. And auditors know it and accept such.
SQF user's input welcome. I anticipate that a little searching would reveal a history of moans about getting CoAs..
The purpose of the approved supplier program is to approve, wait for it, the Supplier! Not specifically the materials they ship you
from the last version guidance (because they didn't issue any for 9.0)
What does it mean?
The objective of this element is to ensure that all incoming materials and services meet specifications and are safe. This element links with 2.3.2, which defines specifications for raw and packaging materials and 2.3.3, which defines specifications for contract service providers. An approved supplier program is a set of procedures implemented by the supplier to assure the safety of incoming goods and services. It may be based on the safety risk presented by the raw material, or based on historical performance or prior history of the supplier.
What do I have to do?
The supplier must be able to provide documented evidence that incoming materials have either been inspected or that they come from an approved supplier. The methods for selecting, evaluating, approving and monitoring an approved supplier must be documented.
So if you feel that some of your products require a CoA, and some don't , totally fine! That is what the risk assessment portion is for. You don't want any CoAs? That's fine too, just ensure you have a mutually agreed upon specification
I have never tested a raw material in my entire career, use reputable companies and rely on either CoA, CoC or a specification that is covered in the vendor contract
Hello!
How is everyone monitoring their suppliers? their performance?
We are a juice manufacturer and we annually pull samples of raw ingredients from approved suppliers and analyze them against both of ours and their specs.
IMO that is TOO much. Based off the SQF 9 code:
Verification of raw materials shall include certificates of conformance, certificates of analysis, or sampling, and testing. The verification frequency shall be identified by the site.
it says COCs, COAs or sampling and testing.
Would our usage of raw materials already be us verifying they send us the correct raw material?
What is everyone in a similar industry doing?
Edit: I mean its VERY time consuming to have to do this every year where we pull all raw material and test it. we are talking about over 50 ingredients that need to be sampled!
Hi TFS,
A seemingly convenient response to your OP was discussed in a 2018 thread linked below, However since unmentioned by SQF users in this thread it is perhaps no longer favoured for some unknown reason (?) -