SQF – Safe Quality Food

Optimize your ability to consistently meet consumer needs for product quality and safety, and reduce the expense of auditing your supply chain. SQF certification of your food production process attests to your commitment to safety, quality and compliance with legal product standards. It also guarantees consumer protection in local and global markets at every level of the supply chain.

What are the SQF objectives?

Initiated in Australia in 1994, the SQF program has been managed since 2013 by the Food Marketing Institute or FMI. It was endorsed by the Global Food Safety Initiative or GFSI in 2004.

For organizations involved in the food chain, whether in primary production, food processing, marketing, catering, warehousing or distribution, as well as food packaging manufacturers, it is essential to prove the quality and hygiene of their products. That’s why it’s so important for these companies to be certified in this field.

Certification to the SQF or Safe Quality Food Code satisfies the requirements of the agri-food sector by enabling companies to gain international recognition. Thanks to the SQF Code, consumers can be sure that these companies implement an appropriate and effective food safety system, ensuring the production and handling of reliable goods.

What is the SQF code?

The SQF Code is a validation mechanism for food safety and excellence, covering primary production, food processing and associated sectors such as packaging and animal nutrition. It is harmonized with HACCP and Codex Alimentarius. It is based on fundamental quality management principles.

Three certification programs are available. Each is designed to match the maturity level of the supplier’s food safety and quality management system. The structure of the programs in the code enables every producer, from small farmers to large-scale producers, to apply for SQF certification.

SQF Basic Program

This program requires producers to implement preventive protocols that incorporate essential food safety control measures. This initiative provides a solid foundation for the production and manufacture of reliable foodstuffs.

Over and above the basic criteria, it requires producers to carry out and record an analysis of the risks associated with the food safety of products and processes, based on the HACCP method, and to develop an intervention strategy to neutralize, prevent or mitigate these risks. This program is validated by the Global Food Security Initiative, GFSI.

It builds on the foundations and imperatives of the HACCP method, using a food quality scheme that includes the control devices required to ensure consistent quality.

The benefits of certification

Certification to the SQF code by an impartial third-party organization has become a sine qua non for most retailers, wholesalers and brand owners. At present, many food producers are forced to undergo several audits based on different standards, due to the absence of a universally accepted food standard. The SQF standard, recognized by a multitude of retailers worldwide, considerably reduces this multiplicity of audits.

Here are the benefits of adopting and certifying based on the SQF code:

  • Implementation and operation of a management system adapted to excel in compliance with quality and food safety standards, and legal compliance requirements, in the countries where the finished product is marketed or consumed ;
  • Use of leverage to improve food safety performance, and access to the means to effectively monitor and evaluate this performance.
  • Reduced waste, product recall and reprocessing.