Board Directors of UK food companies are collectively and individually responsible and liable for food safety.
Today the Institute of Food Science and Technology (IFST) has released a new Food Safety Governance Guide for Directors (2022) that includes essential insights from its members, providing information, toolkits and signposting to useful documents and resources to enable directors to fulfil their obligations.
The document is downloadable free from our website via this link: http://www.ifst.org/fsgd22
One of IFST’s key priorities is building the capability of the UK food system. With this Food Safety Governance Guide, IFST intends to reinforce the placement of food safety firmly on the agenda of every board of directors involved with the production, processing, sale and supply of food to UK consumers, thus helping these businesses deliver safe, legal and fit for purpose food now and into the future.
Food safety is an essential business risk that must be effectively mitigated. Done well, food safety will deliver financial efficiency, shareholder value and competitive advantage as well as consumer protection; done poorly, it will negatively impact business resilience and potentially a business’s very existence, a scenario that every business will want to manage to mitigate against.
Why has this been published now?
Consumer demands for ever-increasing variety, choice and novelty are stretching both supply chains and the capability of those who manage and assure food safety. The consequences of failing to ensure food produced for consumption is safe for all intended consumers can be a catastrophe.
How companies respond can play a significant role in public and consumer perception. Company responses and responsiveness can result in reputations being enhanced or severely damaged in the event of a food safety crisis.
To help enhance businesses’ food safety-focused organisational capability. This will ensure that the best practice requirements are achieved; to ensure safe and legal food is placed on the market and guarantee consumer risk protection.
Chris Gilbert-Wood, Chair of IFST Scientific Committee and Convenor of the Working Group comments: “Good food safety governance for any food business operator should be led from the very top of the organisation. Leadership in creating the right environment and holding management to account to implement effective strategies and systems is essential to the successful implementation of an effective food safety strategy.”
Advantages for you and your organisation
With this guidance document, you will also be able to achieve the following deliverables, such as freedom to operate for the business, and potentially helping to secure competitive advantage and greater assurance around sustainable business growth.
IFST recommends that you download a copy of the document, and also share it with your Board of Directors. Visit http://www.ifst.org/fsgd22 to download the document.
Andy Kerridge, Consultant at Wyvern Food Solutions Ltd and member of the Working Group that prepared this document comments: “I cannot think of one role in a food company which does not have a food safety responsibility – from MD to maintenance engineer, from packing to procurement, from finance to food taster – they all have an impact. It is absolutely not the sole responsibility of one person or one team.”