Globally, consumers and governments place a high premium on food product safety. Therefore, the food supply chain must cope with commercial demands to lower costs and shorten the time to market while also ensuring that goods meet standards through proper testing and certification. As a result, more and more food service providers and merchants are requiring their suppliers to be verified against a Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI)-approved program.
What Are BRCGS Certification's Main Advantages?
Like other benchmarked certification schemes, BRCGS accreditation helps companies at every stage of the food supply chain, from retailers to food producers. The main advantages are as follows:
Boost the Safety of Food
As planned, food safety is much improved with BRCGS certification. Eighty per cent of respondents cited the manufacture of safe food as their main reason for going through the BRCGS audit and applying for certification, according to an intriguing 2021 study about the economic effects of BRCGS certification on manufacturing facilities that was posted on the BRCGS website. To safeguard your brand, you must prioritize safety. Businesses report a 40% decrease in food recalls when they get and retain BRCGS standards, which translates into lower regulatory and reputational concerns.
Boost Efficiency in Operations
Changes in manufacturing procedures required to meet BRCGS requirements result in extra benefits for businesses that get BRCGS certification. Of the more than 450 BRCGS-approved producers polled:
- 50% went toward purchasing new or upgraded machinery and plants.
- Information technology systems were enhanced by 27%.
- 28% improved their methods for developing new products.
- Following BRCGS certification, 50% of manufacturers reported fewer customer audits.
Gaining BRCGS accreditation is an investment in your business that will pay off in the long run by improving production flows. Although BRCGS demands more monitoring of your processes, most food processors benefit from this enhanced scrutiny in terms of efficiency.
Increase Market Access
70% of the top 10 retailers in the world recognize BRCGS, which greatly increases market access for certified companies and boosts your business's capacity to compete on a worldwide scale. 60% of the certified firms polled said they were more competitive in foreign markets and more than half said they were more competitive in their market. This emphasizes how important certification is as a differentiation in the cutthroat food sector. This expansion is ascribed to the certification's acceptance by merchants globally as a symbol of quality and security in the food sector, which makes it easier to enter new markets.
Additionally, 30% of respondents reported that BRCGS certification resulted in product innovation, which raised average profitability by about 6% for those who reported financial advantages from certification.
BRC focuses on HACCP and operates on a three-year audit cycle
Food safety is the main emphasis of BRC certification. Additionally, it emphasizes Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points, or HACCP. Because BRC conducts audits in three-year cycles, your company's operations may be continuously improved. The audit's initial phase evaluates the paperwork, methods, and procedures of your business. This covers the process of designing, producing, packaging, and storing goods until they are prepared for customer shipment.
To find out if there are any contaminants in any containers or packaging materials used in production processes at the time, the second part of the audit focuses on product testing. This could include anything from raw materials used during manufacturing to storage containers used after initial production is finished with the final product being packaged before it leaves for distribution channels like grocery stores across Canada or overseas markets like Europe, for example. You can rely on trusted solutions from Valex!
FAQs
What are the advantages of BRC Certification for small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs)?
By improving their marketability to large retailers and food service businesses, guaranteeing adherence to international food safety regulations, and maybe creating new business prospects, BRC Certification can greatly help SMEs. Additionally, it assists SMEs in putting food safety best practices into practice, which may boost productivity and lower waste and recall expenses.
In what ways can BRC Certification boost customer trust?
Customers are reassured by BRC Certification that the food they buy is both safe and of excellent quality. By proving that a business follows globally accepted food safety guidelines, is subject to frequent and thorough inspections, and is dedicated to ongoing development, it gains the trust of customers.
After the first accreditation, how is BRC Certification preserved?
Continuous adherence to BRC standards, frequent internal audits, remedial measures for non-conformities, and yearly recertification audits are how BRC Certification is preserved after first accreditation. To keep their accreditation, businesses must show a continuous dedication to food safety and quality enhancement.