ISO 22000:2018 Food Safety Management System
What is ISO 22000?
ISO 22000 is a standard written by the International Standard Organization (ISO) for the food safety system. Food safety is about identifying the physical, chemical and biological hazards to which the consumer is exposed at the consumption stage and preventing these hazards from occurring in the production stages and being transferred to the final product. Products produced or served without taking food safety into account can have undesirable effects and consequences. Organizations in the food chain can prevent such hazards by applying ISO’s (International Standard Organization) ISO 22000 Food Safety Management System standard. Today, many food products cross national borders and are offered for consumption in different countries. The ISO 22000 standard provides guidance to create safe food within the food supply chain.
The ISO 22000 Standard covers four main topics:
- Interactive communication,
- System management,
- Pre-requisite Programs and
- HACCP principles
One of the most important features of the standard is that it can be integrated with other management system standards.
The ISO 22000 standard includes the HACCP system according to Codex Alimentarius and provides a system that can meet the minimum requirements for risk management. Thanks to the HACCP study, the product is secured by identifying biological, chemical and physical hazards that may arise in the product at all process stages and providing the necessary controls. In addition to HACCP requirements, ISO 22000 Food Safety Management System also includes management system requirements and ensures the establishment of a suitable system. In addition, within this system, organizations are required to demonstrate full compliance with Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and to carry out preventive programs.
The internationally recognized standard is applicable to all organizations in the food sector, regardless of size and capacity. The standard specifically aims for organizations to establish a purposeful, consistent and more integrated management system in compliance with the law.
Relationships with Other Standards
Today, for safe food production, an approach that controls the selection and evaluation of suppliers, acceptance to the enterprise, production stages, including final storage and shipment, starting from the production of raw materials, additives, other auxiliary substances and packaging materials has emerged. The HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) System is one of these approaches. The relevant official bodies and national standards bodies of various countries have made important arrangements and published standards for the HACCP System. Although the emergence of the HACCP concept has a history of more than 30 years and the concept has international validity, a common and comprehensive standard for the HACCP System has not been established during this time.
In international markets, the existence of almost every country’s standard on food safety and the difficulty and reluctance of other countries to adapt to each other has revealed the need for the preparation and publication of an international standard on this issue. For this purpose, the ISO 22000 Standard was started to be prepared by TC 34, one of the working groups within the International Standards Organization (ISO), and the relevant standard was published on 1 September 2005 as an international standard under the name “ISO 22000: 2005 Food Safety Management Systems – Requirements for All Organizations in the Food Chain”.
ISO 22000 is the standard that defines and certifies the requirements to be applied during the establishment of the Food Safety Management System, but there are also published guidance standards, all of which are called the ISO 22000 series. Although there are many standards in the ISO 22000 series, ISO/TS 22004 is the implementation guide of ISO 22000. The ISO 22000 Standard is not a standard that transfers the applications of ISO 9001 to the food industry, as some people convey. However, ISO 22000 is a food safety standard that is compatible with ISO 9001 and ISO 14001, is ideal for integrated system building and fully covers the HACCP concept.
In the food industry, each unit must realize the conditions to ensure food safety while under its control. Prerequisite Programs (Prerequisite Programs-PRPs) are programs that ensure that the Food Safety Management System is firmly established. These conditions and practices, which are traditionally realized within the framework of GMP, GHP, GLP, GAP and other similar concepts, are now considered as prerequisites in the preparation and implementation of effective HACCP plans and reliable food production. Pre-requisite programs ensure that the basic environmental and production conditions in safe food production are taken under control. Some commonly used pre-requisite programs can be listed as GMP, GHP, GAP.
Organization with an Effectively Implemented ISO 22000 System
- Ensures quality, safety for health and reliability for the customer.
- Ensures compliance with the principles of the HACCP Rule,
- It gives your company international credibility,
- It provides a system approach instead of a product approach in the company,
- More effective and more dynamic food safety hazard control,
- It eliminates the confusion between ISO 9001, HACCP, BRC and IFS,
- It ensures more efficient use of resources,
- Demonstrates Your Commitment to Produce/Sell Safe Food,
- Strengthens your brand / corporate image, increases your new market / new customer expectations,
- Better planning leads to less post-production validation,
- Ensures systematic management of pre-requisite programs,
- It enables dynamic communication with suppliers and customers, regulators and other interested parties about its elements,
- It provides a systematic and preventive approach to identifying food safety hazards and implementing control measures,
- Ensures compliance with legal regulations.
Sectors that can be certified under ISO 22000 Standard
- Food Producers
- Primary Producer-Farms, Organizations producing agricultural products
- Food Packaging Manufacturer
- Animal Feed Manufacturer
- Pet Food Manufacturer
- Additive Manufacturer
- Logistics Companies for Storage and Shipment in the Food Sector
- Service Providers Suitable for the Food Sector
- Caterers, Restaurants, Catering Hotels
- Machinery and Equipment Manufacturers for Food Factory
- Organizations Trading and Selling Food Products