Food Safety Help Desk.

SQF/GFCI and SQF/BRC work closely with the FDA on developing the FSMA requirements. Two requirements that are included in FSMA are not protected by SQF/BRC, which are PCQI, FSVP and possibly the newest regulations of the Adulteration of Human Foods.
As the MEP center, we recommend, and the FDA requires, that each manufacturing location have a registered PCQI and are aware of FSVR requirements. Because of the importance of these competencies, we suggest backups and for there to be multiple trained individuals. The cost of training for these courses is relatively inexpensive (~$750 – $1,000) as compared to the cost / expense of failing an FDA Audit.
PCQI can be a company employee or an outside consultant. The PCQI is the only person that can sign a food safety plan in a facility. If and when the FDA audits a particular facility, they will know if you have a registered PCQI for your facility. The audit will be tempered if you do.

There are two separate segments to compliance:

Government Compliance – rules and regulations required by the FDA and potentially by local governments.

Commercial Compliance – requirements put forth on a manufacturer by a client or purchaser.

The commercial compliance is at multiple levels and requires a third-party audit from companies such as NSF, ABI, etc. They will begin their audits by reviewing your SOPs and GMPs, auditing you periodically, and providing you with a quality score.

Third-party audits on GMP’s is the minimum requirement for which many large retailers ask manufacturers to comply. Higher level Food Safety Certifications include – SQF, BRC, FSSC 22000. The most popular one in the U.S. is SQF, followed by BRC, which can be for both distributors and manufacturers. FSSC 22000 is the closest thing to ISSO certification and goes beyond food safety and quality throughout the whole business process. Both SQF and BRC, depending on how prepared you are for the audit, takes six months to a year to get audited and certified.