ISO takes another step forward towards ensuring the safety of food products for consumers with its new ISO 22005 standard on traceability in the feed and food chain, its latest addition to the ISO 22000 series on food management systems.
ISO 22005:2007, Traceability in the feed and food chain — General principles and basic requirements for system design and implementation, establishes the principles and requirements for the design and implementation of a feed and food traceability system. This standard will allow organizations operating at any step of the food chain to:
- trace the flow of materials (feed, food, their ingredients and packaging),
- identify necessary documentation and tracking for each stage of production,
- ensure adequate coordination between the different actors involved,
- require that each party be informed of at least his direct suppliers and clients
Apart from public health considerations, the new standard will also have other social and economic advantages. In the food industry, a diversity of retail and private quality schemes generate uneven levels of safety, confusion over requirements and increased cost and complication for suppliers obliged to conform to multiple programs. ISO 22005 offers a unique solution for good practice on a worldwide basis and can thus contribute to lowering trade barriers.
To read the full release, or for more informaiton, visit ISO's Web site here.