12 Apr 2013 What is the GFSI Global Markets Programme?
Small and/or less developed businesses are frequently denied access to market opportunities because they lack expertise and resources to meet the food safety requirements of the formal supply chain. This is where the GFSI Global Markets Programme kicks in… Vel Pillay, a world-respected food safety expert and Food Services Manager, LRQA Americas, talks about the programme in an interview at the recent GFSI Global Food Safety Conference in Barcelona.
Q: There has been a lot of discussion around this initiative from the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) – the Global Markets Programme; what’s it all about?
VP: It is designed for small and less developed businesses that intend to upgrade to GFSI-recognised standards and schemes at a later date. The essential idea is to have a basic assessment against the Global Markets Programme and then to proceed to HACCP and then the final stage is to achieve certification against a GFSI-recognised standard or scheme. It is a self-assessed, as well as a certification body-assessed programme that has been created by GFSI.
Q: So you have told us what the Global Markets Programme is. Could you also tell us about what you have seen, where is it being accepted, maybe talk to us about a pilot programme and also what has happened at this year’s GFSI event in Barcelona.
VP: The GFSI has realised the importance of this programme and has devoted a lot of time working on it, in fact I am proud to say that I am part of the technical working group for the Global Markets programme. We have developed material for conducting the assessment, marketing material and promotional material to make sure that the small manufacturers and suppliers become aware of the benefits that this programme can bring to them. These materials are readily available on the www.mygfsi.com website.
Q: Talk to us about how this then comes to life. Perhaps share with us plans for a pilot programme?
VP: There have already been several pilot programmes that have been conducted by various companies to gauge the ability of this programme to solve some of the food safety concerns. The pilots have been very successful as a matter of fact; the pilot itself consists of phases with awareness building for management followed by a training period, mentoring then by the assessment itself. What we have found is that the self-assessment by the organisation coupled with the training is delivering a tremendous improvement on the response to food safety.
Q: You mention that pilot programmes have started. Where do you see the Global Markets Programme in five or ten years? What impact could it have on global food safety?
VP: The Global Markets Programme will definitely have a tremendous impact in addressing food safety concerns. As part of any assurance programme, it is important to identify the weakest link. And if a smaller supplier is identified as the weakest link then this programme will actually enhance the ability to control potential hazards by these smaller organisations serving the global supply chain. This can only benefit the whole of the industry.
Q: There has been a lot of interest at the GFSI this year around packaging. It is a topic like it has never been before at the GFSI. Talk to us about that.
VP: The development of the packaging industry is one of the requirements now by some of the multinationals. As a result, with the approval of PAS 223 and benchmarking by GFSI it has now become part of FSSC 22000. The packaging organisations are very interested in applying a process-based approach to their operations as required by some of their customers and by themselves in order to bring about continual improvement and cost reduction
Q: Talk numbers. We have heard that the FSSC now has over 4,000 certificates. Talk to us about packaging. Where is packaging at now? Where could it be in five years?
VP: Well just like for food manufacturing two years ago, when FSSC 22000 was launched in 2011, they had something like 30 certificates. Today, that figures stands at over 4,000+ certificates and we will probably see the same trend in packaging. So far the figure stands at 450 and the trend is upward. This number will at least double by next year.
Q: Finally, could you talk about the benefits that FSSC 22000 in packaging could bring to the food supply chain?
VP: With 450 certificates currently issued by FSSC on Packaging Management System PAS 223, we are seeing a tremendous improvement in the control of the hazard and risk mitigation in the packaging industry as a result of the advent of PAS 223 and being combined with ISO 22000. The better control of hazards will eventually lead to cost reductions, and hazard control which are some of the main drivers for implementation of FSSC across the packaging industry.
Source: LRQA South Africa