The addition will give organizations the possibility to be FSSC 22000 audited and certified for Food Safety and Quality Management Systems.
Adding QMS is voluntary and organizations can choose to be audited for food safety only or to have the QMS module added to FSSC 22000 certification by means of one integrated audit for Food Safety and Quality Management Systems.
Food QMS certification falls outside Global Food Safety Initiative's benchmarking and recognition.
However, FSSC 22000 will apply all its existing and future GFSI and ISO based requirements for good governance and integrity also to the new QMS module. This means that certification bodies, offering the FSSC 22000 QMS module, must be accredited for ISO 9001 and auditors must meet all relevant competence requirements.
FSSC 22000 expects to open up the possibility for additional Food QMS certification beginning next year.