ISO 22000:2018 - Getting started with the basics


In this post I will be starting the analysis of food safety management systems, in accordance with the requirements of ISO 22000:2018 standard.

I will begin by commenting that, as you are surely aware of, the ISO 22000 standard is a document whose current version is the one published in 2018, which is the first revision of the standard originally approved and published in 2005. Among the relevant changes in this latest version, the current one, there is the one that adjusted the management system model to the characteristics that ISO has introduced to many management system standards, under uniform criteria, that allow organizations to establish different management systems standards in an integrated way.


The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) itself presents it as follows:

What is a management system?

A management system is the way in which an organization manages the interrelated parts of its business in order to achieve its objectives. These objectives can relate to a number of different topics, including product or service quality, operational efficiency, environmental performance, health and safety in the workplace and many more.

The level of complexity of the system will depend on each organization’s specific context. For some organizations, especially smaller ones, it may simply mean having strong leadership from the business owner, providing a clear definition of what is expected from each individual employee and how they contribute to the organization’s overall objectives, without the need for extensive documentation. More complex businesses operating, for example, in highly regulated sectors, may need extensive documentation and controls in order to fulfil their legal obligations and meet their organizational objectives.

 

The ISO model: agreed by experts

ISO management system standards (MSS) help organizations improve their performance by specifying repeatable steps that organizations consciously implement to achieve their goals and objectives, and to create an organizational culture that reflexively engages in a continuous cycle of self-evaluation, correction and improvement of operations and processes through heightened employee awareness and management leadership and commitment.

The benefits of an effective management system to an organization include:

· More efficient use of resources and improved financial performance,

· Improved risk management and protection of people and the environment,

· Increased capability to deliver consistent and improved services and products, thereby increasing value to customers and all other stakeholders

MSSs are the result of consensus among international experts with expertise in global management, leadership strategies, and efficient and effective processes and practices. MSS standards can be implemented by any organization, large or small.

 

Management Systems Standards (MSS)

These are ISO standards that set out requirements or guidance to help organizations manage their policies and processes to achieve specific objectives. MSS are designed to be applicable across all economic sectors, various types and sizes of organizations and diverse geographical, cultural and social conditions.

Many ISO MSS have the same structure and contain many of the same terms & definitions and requirements.

 

Annex SL: more than a shared structure

In addition to being laid out in the same way, there are some parts of a standard where identical text can be used. This improves coherence and recognition, simplifies use, and is defined in something called “Annex SL”. It means that in addition to having the same structure, MSSs can contain many of the same terms and definitions. This is particularly useful for those organizations that choose to operate a single (sometimes called “integrated”) management system that can meet the requirements of two or more MSSs being used simultaneously.

Annex SL plays a key role in the interoperability and user friendliness of standards for countless users of ISO management standards around the world.

 

Why ISO 22000?

The ISO 22000 standard: 2018 establishes the requirements for a food safety management system and can be certified. Draw a map of what an organization must do to demonstrate its ability to control food safety hazards to ensure that food is safe. It can be used by any organization, regardless of its size or position in the food chain.

Whatever their size or product, all food producers have a responsibility to manage the safety of their products and the well-being of their consumers. So there is the ISO 22000 standard.

The consequences of unsafe food can be serious. ISO’s food safety management standards help organizations identify and control food safety hazards, at the same time as working together with other ISO management standards, such as ISO 9001. Applicable to all types of producer, ISO 22000: 2018 standard provides a layer of reassurance within the global food supply chain, helping products cross borders and bringing people food that they can trust.

In summary, in order to start its analysis, the ISO 22000: 2018 standard specifies requirements for a food safety management system (FSMS) to enable an organization that is directly or indirectly involved in the food chain:

 a)   to plan, implement, operate, maintain and update a FSMS providing products and services that are safe, in accordance with their intended use;

 b)   to demonstrate compliance with applicable statutory and regulatory food safety requirements;

 c)    to evaluate and assess mutually agreed customer food safety requirements and to demonstrate conformity with them;

 d)   to effectively communicate food safety issues to interested parties within the food chain;

 e)    to ensure that the organization conforms to its stated food safety policy;

 f)      to demonstrate conformity to relevant interested parties;

 g)   to seek certification or registration of its FSMS by an external organization, or make a self-assessment or self-declaration of conformity to this document.

All requirements of this document are generic and are intended to be applicable to all organizations in the food chain, regardless of size and complexity. Organizations that are directly or indirectly involved include, but are not limited to, feed producers, animal food producers, harvesters of wild plants and animals, farmers, producers of ingredients, food manufacturers, retailers, and organizations providing food services, catering services, cleaning and sanitation services, transportation, storage and distribution services, suppliers of equipment, cleaning and disinfectants, packaging materials and other food contact materials.

This document allows any organization, including small and/or less developed organizations (e.g. a small farm, a small packer-distributor, a small retail or food service outlet) to implement externally-developed elements in their FSMS.

Internal and/or external resources can be used to meet the requirements of this document.

Unlike other families of standards in which the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) created a particular Technical Committee for each family of standards, such as the case of Technical Committee No. 176 for the ISO 9000 family, or the No. 204 for the ISO 14000 family, the ISO 22000 family has been developed by a previously established technical committee, one of the oldest, the No. 34, created since 1947, the year in which ISO itself was founded, and to which only one Technical Subcommittee was established, the No. 17, to undertake these standardization work on food safety management systems.

For some reason, and I think it is because ISO has used the structure of TC 34, perhaps already highly bureaucratic, to develop these standards, is why ISO 22000 family of standards has not yet been able to achieve world leadership in the standards and certification schemes of food safety management systems. But I will address this point another time.

In the next post we will delve into the context of this ISO 22000:2018 standard.

 

Author:

Ernesto Palomares Hilton


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