Article
BRC certification
What the BRC standard checks at a packaging manufacturer, and why food companies ask for it.
BRC is a safety standard developed by the British Retail Consortium. Packaging manufacturers are covered by a version of their own — BRCGS Packaging Materials.
The standard looks at a system rather than at a single product: hazard analysis, hygiene of the production areas, control of incoming materials and batch traceability, foreign-body control, and the handling of complaints and product recall.
The check is carried out by an independent certification body during an on-site audit. The audit repeats — the certificate runs for a limited term and has to be re-confirmed.
For food companies it is a practical filter: the certificate cuts down the supplier checks they have to run themselves, and it says that the processes on the shop floor are written down and repeatable.
