Part of the food safety management pillar of the TAAG Learning Center, along with HACCP.
Table of contents
What is GFSI and why does it exist?
GFSI (Global Food Safety Initiative) is a private, non-profit, industry-driven initiative run through the Consumer Goods Forum. It does not certify companies directly: its role is to evaluate ("benchmark") existing food safety certification schemes against a single technical requirements document and to recognize those that meet that standard. The original goal, still valid today, was to reduce audit duplication: a supplier certified under a GFSI-recognized scheme can be accepted by multiple retail and manufacturing customers without having to go through a different process for each one.
The main GFSI-recognized schemes
GFSI does not issue a single standard of its own; instead it recognizes several schemes that meet its requirements, each with a different origin and scope:
BRCGS (formerly BRC)
Originally developed by UK retailers, it is one of the most widely used schemes worldwide for food manufacturing plants.
SQF (Safe Quality Food)
Managed by the US Food Industry Association, it combines food safety and product quality management in a single scheme.
FSSC 22000
Built on the ISO 22000 standard, combining it with additional sector-specific technical requirements.
IFS (International Featured Standards)
Of German and French origin, it is widely required by retail chains in continental Europe.
What does an audit under one of these schemes assess?
Documentation and management system
The auditor reviews the food safety policy, the formal hazard analysis (usually built on HACCP principles), the operating procedures and the record history for at least the last 12 months.
On-site verification
It includes a physical walkthrough to confirm that the Good Manufacturing Practices described on paper are actually applied day to day: personal hygiene, pest control, equipment maintenance, allergen management and separation of process flows.
Non-conformities: minor, major and critical
Each finding is classified by severity. A minor non-conformity does not usually prevent certification, but a major one requires a corrective action plan within a set deadline, and a critical one (for example, evidence of an active risk to product safety) can block certification until it is resolved.
The role of analytical evidence in the audit
A well-documented HACCP plan is not enough on its own: GFSI schemes require objective evidence that the controls actually work. That is where microbiological analysis and environmental monitoring records come in: an auditor reviews result trends over time, not just a single data point, to verify that the verification program is effectively detecting and correcting deviations before they reach the finished product.
How to prepare a plant for a GFSI audit
- Run an internal audit or a "mock audit" several months in advance, ideally with an auditor who is not involved in day-to-day operations.
- Check that documentation is current and signed, and that it matches what actually happens in the plant.
- Formally close non-conformities from previous audits, with evidence of the corrective action taken.
- Train plant staff, not just the quality team, so they can answer the auditor's questions about their own job.
Common mistakes that cause an audit to fail
- Gaps between what the documented procedure says and what is actually done on the production line.
- Incomplete records or records without clear traceability of who completed them and when.
- Non-conformities from previous audits that were never formally closed.
- Operators who cannot explain why they perform a given control, beyond "because the procedure says so".
Conclusion
GFSI-recognized schemes (BRCGS, SQF, FSSC 22000 and IFS, among others) exist to reduce audit duplication without lowering the food safety standard required of the food industry. Passing them takes more than documentation: it requires consistent analytical evidence that process controls, from HACCP to environmental monitoring, work reliably over time.
About TAAG
Discover how TAAG's microbiological analysis services and AiGOR™ molecular detection provide the analytical evidence that supports a GFSI scheme audit.
Frequently asked questions
Does GFSI certify companies directly?
No. GFSI evaluates and recognizes existing certification schemes (such as BRCGS, SQF or FSSC 22000); it is those schemes, through accredited certification bodies, that audit and certify each plant.
Which GFSI scheme should you choose?
It mainly depends on what your customers or target markets require: some retail chains ask for a specific scheme, while others accept any GFSI-recognized one.
What happens if a critical non-conformity is found during the audit?
In general, certification is suspended or not granted until the plant demonstrates, with documented evidence, that it has corrected the root cause of the finding.