8 replies to this topic

[F00d S4f3ty]

Hello IFSQN,

I am the Food Safety Director, and the only Food Safety personnel, here at a confectionary company that focuses primarily on chocolate. We are located in the United States and our facility employs approximately (100) people within production. Beginning of this month we had our BRC audit and let's just say it did not go all too well, as expected. As the only Food Safety/Quality personnel at our company our programs, systems, and plans have inevitably been weakening and falling apart due to neglect. This has resulted in a major non-conformance in Resources during our most recent audit (1.1.7). These were the following comments made within our non-conformance:

Major. NC 1.1.7. Even though, the senior manager has provided significative resources to complete the upgrade of the building that was in operation in June 2023 to improve facilities of employees, cafeteria, production areas to provide to some of the process more space for employees and material, it has been noted during the audit several gaps in some of the programs reviewed, such as frequencies not respected, tasks not fully completed as listed in several minors raised in this audit. It implied an important lack of time or human resources in the quality department, which was composed only of one person by the time of this audit that resulted in several programs not fully respected as required.

I would say we are considered lucky to not have had a critical non-conformance being issued for Management Commitment. There has been ongoing discussion with the senior management team on what they are willing and not willing to do to close out this non-conformance. The auditor made it very clear that I am in dire need of help and cannot manage everything on my own. This was also something the auditor during our previous audit had mentioned as well. However, we were able to produce a good score on our previous audit due to the auditor wanting to give us a chance to improve, highly praising my potential in being able to produce such results if given the resources, time, and help necessary. Please refer to my forum post I had published after our previous audit:

https://www.ifsqn.co...ent-commitment/

Over the past year I came to the realization that failure was the only option I had left in hopes my company would finally take what I had to say into consideration and trust me. Fast forward to this last audit we produced an unsavory score not much to my surprise. We ended with (1) major non-conformance, followed by (15) minor non-conformances, Resources being the major non-conformance raised. Even despite everything it is to my dismay that I still cannot get senior management to take my requests seriously. Not only has my company not made a final decision on what “resources” they are willing to supply me with, I feel as if I do not have enough time to close out all of these non-conformances on my own before the deadline due to the lack of resources. I continue to express my needs for a team, and I have requested the, “BRCGS Food Safety and Quality Management System for Food Manufacturers - Issue 9” here on IFSQN’s store to at least give me more of a footing to work with in closing out the other non-conformances as well as creating more structural integrity within our severely weakened Food Safety System. However, Senior Management is dead set on the idea of just finding an all encompassing “software” to do it all for us and calling it a day despite my many attempts in informing them that something such as that not only does not exist, but also impossible due to the complexity and nature of the Standard. That the Standard is something that is to be tailored differently to the various different needs of the company utilizing it.

Now here I am again, scavenging for any advice on what to do now. How do I go about closing out this non-conformance? Is my head in the right place? Is it even possible with my current circumstances?

Edited by F00d S4f3ty, 21 May 2024 - 07:55 PM.

[ChristinaK]

Oh jeez. That is a really tough situation.

 

You need to stress that the company is now trending toward a critical failure due to lack of resources (money, personnel) they're committing to food safety. Last year you received non-conformances and comments from the auditor regarding management commitment, this year you received a major related to resources...The auditor for next year will be even more critical toward senior management and resource allocation since you had 2 years in a row where this issue was raised. The failure to properly address the root cause will lead to a critical and thus an audit failure next year.

 

How many of your customers require that you are BRC-certified? I would generate a list; if you can include the % of production or sales that correlate with each customer, even better. You can use this in your argument against management. Talk to them as if it's a done deal that they will lose their BRC certification next year. With that, they will lose that list of customers. Customers are not loyal, and they will go to your competitors who have maintained certification. You need to stress that.

 

And I will hope that your company isn't one of our suppliers...   

 

I hope that the auditor & technical reviewer for this audit really push your company on the root cause analysis and corrective actions. Maybe that will get management to cave...?

[SQFconsultant]

Was this actually written by an auditor??? Haven't seen such as long and convoluted single sentence in a long time even considering the word error and sentence structure.

 

"Major. NC 1.1.7. Even though, the senior manager has provided significative resources to complete the upgrade of the building that was in operation in June 2023 to improve facilities of employees, cafeteria, production areas to provide to some of the process more space for employees and material, it has been noted during the audit several gaps in some of the programs reviewed, such as frequencies not respected, tasks not fully completed as listed in several minors raised in this audit. It implied an important lack of time or human resources in the quality department, which was composed only of one person by the time of this audit that resulted in several programs not fully respected as required."

 

So, based on other things being minors that makes 1.1.7 a MAJOR????

 

I realize from what you wrote that there are issues at your facility, however I would have been fighting with that Auditor on the out brief, someone else needs to inform me how the statement equals a major finding? That is just too FQQked up!!!

[F00d S4f3ty]

Was this actually written by an auditor??? Haven't seen such as long and convoluted single sentence in a long time even considering the word error and sentence structure.
 
"Major. NC 1.1.7. Even though, the senior manager has provided significative resources to complete the upgrade of the building that was in operation in June 2023 to improve facilities of employees, cafeteria, production areas to provide to some of the process more space for employees and material, it has been noted during the audit several gaps in some of the programs reviewed, such as frequencies not respected, tasks not fully completed as listed in several minors raised in this audit. It implied an important lack of time or human resources in the quality department, which was composed only of one person by the time of this audit that resulted in several programs not fully respected as required."
 
So, based on other things being minors that makes 1.1.7 a MAJOR????
 
I realize from what you wrote that there are issues at your facility, however I would have been fighting with that Auditor on the out brief, someone else needs to inform me how the statement equals a major finding? That is just too FQQked up!!!

I can understand where you are coming from here, but knowing what I do I believe this was the best possible outcome for this audit. Funny enough our auditor this year had received the reward for BRC Auditor of the Year 2023 in the United States. She is foreign, and English is not her primary language, which can explain the grammatical errors you are seeing within the non-conformance. However, I do agree with our auditor that the other non-conformance’s found within our audit can be used as supporting evidence to then raise a major within 1.1.7. I would have raised it on my company myself. I saw this coming from a mile away, and even shared my concerns of this potential outcome with my senior management team before the audit.

[Scotty_SQF]

You may want to consider moving on from this company.  You have done all you could and get this result from an audit and they are still dragging their feet and not supporting you?  Looks like a sign to me that it is time to move on before something more serious happens.

[Dorothy87]

 

hard to say, but it is quite clear - you don't have any support. 100 people on site and only 1 FS director?.. 

I would leave ...

[Scampi]

I wouldn't stress over closing the NCR by yourself in the allotted time

 

Management clearly has no idea what a food safety program actually entails (and are clearly blind to the salmonella recalls that have happened in chocolate world)

 

Walk if your able

 

You can find another job----but you cannot get your time back

 

HOWEVER if you are dead set on trying to close these out before the deadline---your only option is to meet with upper management and tell them flat out---get me help ASAP or they won't be done and you'll lose your certification. And stick to it

[Tony-C]

Hi F00d S4f3ty,

 

  I find your post quite depressing and have every sympathy for you and the situation you are in 

 

For clarity, BRCGS Global Standard for Food Safety Issue 9 Clause 1.1.7 requirements are:

The company’s senior management shall provide the human and financial resources required to produce safe, authentic, legal products to the specified quality and in compliance with the requirements of this Standard.

 

The standard also states:

Fundamental requirements

The Standard contains certain requirements that have been designated as ‘fundamental’. …….. The requirements deemed fundamental are:

• Senior management commitment and continual improvement (1.1)

A lack of focus on a fundamental requirement may result in certification not being granted.

 

You will see from Table 2 Summary of grading criteria, action required and audit frequency that your audit frequency will now be reduced to 6 months, so that may get your senior management to sit up and take notice:

 

 BRCGS Table 2 Summary of grading criteria, action required and audit frequency.png   442.1KB   1 downloads

 

Also note 2 more minors would have meant a revisit required within 28 calendar days.

 

I'm pretty sure that Resources is not an area that comes up as a major non-conformance (or worse) very often, see my posts:

 

BRCGS Food Standard Top 10 Certification Audit Non-Conformances in 2022

 

SQF Certification Audit Non-Conformance Statistics 2021 2022

 

If you are staying put then you have a busy month ahead and I hope you get some support from the management.

 

Be interesting to know what your non-conformances were, particularly the several minors that contributed to your major NC. Send me a PM if you would like me to have a look but don’t want to share globally.

 

Kind regards and good luck,

 

Tony

[XTK]

Hello IFSQN,

I am the Food Safety Director, and the only Food Safety personnel, here at a confectionary company that focuses primarily on chocolate. We are located in the United States and our facility employs approximately (100) people within production. Beginning of this month we had our BRC audit and let's just say it did not go all too well, as expected. As the only Food Safety/Quality personnel at our company our programs, systems, and plans have inevitably been weakening and falling apart due to neglect. This has resulted in a major non-conformance in Resources during our most recent audit (1.1.7). These were the following comments made within our non-conformance:

Major. NC 1.1.7. Even though, the senior manager has provided significative resources to complete the upgrade of the building that was in operation in June 2023 to improve facilities of employees, cafeteria, production areas to provide to some of the process more space for employees and material, it has been noted during the audit several gaps in some of the programs reviewed, such as frequencies not respected, tasks not fully completed as listed in several minors raised in this audit. It implied an important lack of time or human resources in the quality department, which was composed only of one person by the time of this audit that resulted in several programs not fully respected as required.

....

Now here I am again, scavenging for any advice on what to do now. How do I go about closing out this non-conformance? Is my head in the right place? Is it even possible with my current circumstances?

 

Oh Dear!

 

Sound like you are under severe pressure and not valued by Company Senior Management.

 

I am too the only TM looking after Food Safety and Quality in our company but have different experience to yours with 100% commitment from our MD.

 

If I was in your shoes, I'll try to best of my abilities to close those Non-conformities, the same time handing my notice to this Company.

 

Take a deep breath and remember your wellbeing is most important.

 

You will find better place to work that will value you. There's no point in "knocking in to closed doors".

 

Hope you'll get a resolution soon.

 

Kind regards,

T