Sep 23, 2016

By: Sarah Malenich, Senior Manager for Sales & Marketing, Safe Quality Food Institute
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Consuming safe food is a basic human right we all have and being in the food safety industry gives us all the opportunity to contribute to the strengthening of food safety requirements. According to the FDA, the “Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) is the most sweeping reform of our food safety laws in more than 70 years…” We at SQFI realize the importance of this reform and have taken the necessary steps to create additional resources that will assist our stakeholders to strengthen their food safety programs and meet the robust requirements of the FSMA Preventive Controls rule.

In response to FSMA, SQFI has developed a voluntary Preventive Controls audit checklist and guidance document for stakeholders to use as a guide for identifying the necessary steps to bridge any gaps between a company’s SQF Program and the Preventive Controls rule.

It is important to note, however, that using these documents does not guarantee compliance – nor does it absolve the supplier from ensuring that they meet all aspects of the FSMA Preventive Controls Rule for Human Food. While this checklist is voluntary and will not be scored, it is a valuable tool to help suppliers identify and understand any differences between the SQF Program and the Preventive Controls rule.  

SQFI is having a webinar to go over these documents and how to implement them on September 27, 2016. Webinar attendees will:

  • Learn the basic components of the Food Safety Modernization Act with a focus on the Preventive Control Rule;
  • Get answers frequently asked questions regarding SQF and the Preventive Control Rule including the key differences between the two;
  • Study what the supplier should do in order to be compliant; and
  • Discover tools and resources available to assist the supplier to prepare for FSMA, specifically the Preventive Control Rule, and SQF Certification.
Check www.sqfi.com/events for more details and to register.