Significance of ISO 22000 to the Food Industry By Dr. Deryck D. Pattron, Ph.D. FDI, Ministry of Health Port of Spain Trinidad West Indies

Introduction In order to understand the significance of ISO 22000 we must first understand what ISO 22000 is about and how is it applicable to the food industry. To achieve these objectives we must ask the following questions: What ISO 22000 means? -ISO 22000 means consensus agreements between all the economic stakeholders concerned: suppliers; users; government regulators; other interest groups, such as consumers

How ISO 22000 benefit society? For businesses, the widespread adoption of ISO 22000 means that suppliers can base the development of their products and services on specifications that have wide acceptance in their sectors; This, in turn, means that businesses using ISO 22000 are increasingly free to compete on many more markets around the world

How ISO 22000 benefit consumers? For consumers: - conformity of products and services to International Standards -provides assurance about: -quality -safety -reliability

How ISO 22000 benefit trade officials? For trade officials negotiating the emergence of regional and global markets, IS0 22000 create "a level playing field" for all competitors on those markets; The existence of divergent national or regional standards can create technical barriers to trade, even when there is political agreement to do away with restrictive import quotas and the like; International Standards are the technical means by which political trade agreements can be put into practice

How ISO 22000 benefit developing countries? For developing countries, ISO 22000 represents an international consensus and constitute an important source of technological know-how; By defining the characteristics that products and services will be expected to meet on export markets; International Standards give developing countries a basis for making the right decisions when investing their scarce resources and thus avoid squandering them

How ISO 22000 benefits everyone? ISO 22000 can contribute to the quality of life in general by: -ensuring safe food -reducing foodborne diseases -better quality and safer jobs in the food industry -better utilization of resources -more efficient validation and documentation of techniques, methods and procedures -increased profits -increased potential for economic growth and development

How ISO 22000 benefit governments? For governments, ISO 22000 provides: -technological and scientific know-how -bases for developing health, safety and environmental legislation -education of food regulatory personnel

How ISO 22000 benefit governments? (Cont’d) -certification or registration -international acceptance of standards used globally -economic benefits -social benefits -trade liberalization -food quality -food safety -food security

What are the benefits of ISO 22000 for other stakeholders? Confidence that organizations implementing ISO 22000 have the ability to identify and control food safety hazards; International in scope; Provides potential for harmonization of national standards; Provides a reference for the whole food chain; Provides a framework for third party certification;

What are the benefits of ISO 22000 for other stakeholders? (Cont’d) Fills a gap between ISO 9001:2000 and HACCP; Contributes to a better understanding and further development of Codex HACCP; Auditable standards with clear requirements; System approach rather than product approach; Suitable for regulators

Summary of benefits of ISO 22000 More efficient and dynamic food safety hazard control; Systematic management of prerequisite programmes; Valid basis for taking decisions; Increased due diligence; Control focused on what is necessary;

Summary of benefits of ISO 22000 (Cont’d) Saves resources by reducing overlapping system audits; Organizes and targets communication among partners; Resource optimization; Improves documentation; Better planning, less post-process verification

Conclusions Food safety is related to the presence of and levels of food-borne hazards in food at the point of consumption. As food safety hazards may be introduced at any stage of the food chain, adequate control throughout the food chain is essential. Thus, food safety is a joint responsibility of all parties participating in the food chain; Failures in food supply can cause human suffering, death, poor reputation, violations, poor nutrition, poor quality products and decreased profits; ISO 22000 ensures integrity of food supply chain by minimizing food-borne hazards throughout the food chain by ensuring that there are no weak links;

Conclusions (Cont’d) It therefore makes good scientific sense for those who are involved in food processing, manufacturing, storage, distribution of food and food products to adopt and implement ISO 22000; ISO 22000 for food safety management systems is intended to provide food safety and security; ISO 22000 can be applied on its own or in combination with other management system standards such as ISO 9001:2000

Bibliography ISO 2005-Food safety management systems-Requirements for any organization in the food chain. (2005). Geneva: FDSI 22000. ISO 9001:2000. Quality management system-Requirements. Codex Alimentarius Food Hygiene Basic Texts. (2001). Rome: FAO Reference websites: http://www.iso.org http://www.codexalimentarius.net

Thank You Dr. Deryck D. Pattron FDI, Ministry of Health Port of Spain Trinidad, West Indies dpattron@scientist.com