GMP CERTIFICATION

GMP Certification (Good Manufacturing Practices) is the regulatory reference that provides general technical guidance for ensuring hygiene and quality throughout the food chain.

This standard defines management actions to ensure ideal conditions for the production of healthy and safe food.

The main objective of GMP is to protect the customer. Therefore the food business is required to meet the basic operating conditions and procedures specified.

Another purpose of the standard is to spread the culture of safety food within the company that has as its starting point the proper management of quality and safety.

GMP certification is issued by Audit Service & Certification and maintained through annual surveillance audits and three-yearly renewal audits.

Through alignment with the standards referred to in the regulation, it will be possible to pursue the objectives set:

• Continuous improvement of performance and possibility of cost reduction;
• Satisfaction of market requirements and facilitation of export and international trade;
• Assurance of quality, safety and strengthening of the corporate image;
• Compliance with legal requirements and customer confidence.

The certification path consists of 4 stages

Application for Certification

In this first part the economic aspects and the activities that will be performed by the auditors during the certification activity are agreed. This part ends with the signing of a contract. The certification process is in fact a contract between the company and the certification body. It usually lasts three years.

Preliminary Audit (optional and possibly requested by the customer)

Its purpose is to examine the level of readiness of the system being certified. This type of audit is not part of the certification process, so any improvements are issued in the form of a recommendation and are not officially notified in the audit report.

Certification Audit – Stage 1

The audit takes place at the company’s premises. During this stage, the auditor gathers information and checks the certification documentation. He determines which are the mandatory and voluntary reference standards for the system to be certified. This step is preparatory to the second certification audit.

Certification Audit – Stage 2

During this stage the auditor will check that the standards are actually being applied by the company. At the end of this stage, the Certification Body may proceed with the certification decision.