The Food Safety Team in the FSSC 22000 food safety management system comprises people involved in the development, implementation, and maintenance of the FSMS in the certified entity. It is required by the standard that such a team should be cross-functional, competent, and under the control of an appointed person who enjoys the authority to make food safety-related decisions. Auditors pay particular attention to the structure of such teams when carrying out both certification and surveillance audits because an improperly established team is one of the major causes of nonconformities identified in manufacturing facilities. This article provides the structure of FSSC 22000 food safety team, responsibilities of the FSSC 22000 coordinator, qualities of an effective food safety team leader, and creation of an FSSC 22000 implementation team.
What Is an FSSC 22000 Food Safety Team
FSSC 22000 Food Safety Team is a multi-disciplinary team that is assigned by the top management to coordinate all food safety-related activities for the entire scope of certification of an organization. It is a compulsory element according to ISO 22000, which constitutes the base for FSSC 22000, along with the prerequisite program and other FSSC requirements.
The members of the food safety team are usually selected from the departments like production, QA, engineering, purchasing, warehousing, and sanitation. Each one brings the departmental expertise, and the FSSC 22000 food safety team leader oversees the output of the entire team.
Why Food Safety Team Roles Matter for FSSC 22000 Certification
The presence of clearly-defined roles for the food safety management system creates an audit trail straight through to individuals for the certification audit. When the auditor queries who authorized a certain HACCP plan, who verified the corrective action, or who approved a change with the supplier, the response should be in terms of the role, not just a department name. It also allows the organization to have food safety-related decisions made when the right individual is out of the office or no longer with the organization due to being defined as a role within the food safety team.
Structure of the FSSC 22000 Food Safety Team
An FSSC 22000 food safety team that is well-formed is determined by the size and complexity of the business itself. While smaller organizations could have the different positions combined in less people, bigger companies would assign one individual for each position. Here are some common positions:
- Team leader for food safety (may be the coordinator for FSSC 22000)
- Quality assurance representative
- Production or operations representative
- Engineering or maintenance representative
- Procurement/supplier quality representative
- Warehouse/dispensing representative
- Sanitation/hygiene representative
This team is appointed formally by top management normally through organization charts and terms of reference to ensure that there is clarity regarding the reporting process during audit. The terms of reference must clearly outline the decision-making powers of each member of the team, frequency of the meeting of the team, and the procedure to be followed when a food safety problem cannot be solved at the operation level. Companies with multiple sites normally have an FSSC 22000 food safety team per site and corporate quality department.
Roles and Responsibilities of FSSC 22000 Food Safety Team Members
Roles and responsibilities of FSSC 22000 food safety team members differ depending on the role that they play, however, all the team members should be involved in the identification of hazards, verification, and continuous improvement processes. The representation of all relevant departments is important to make sure that the hazard analysis takes into account the actual operation practices and is not just the document prepared by the quality department in isolation.
FSSC 22000 Coordinator Responsibilities
FSSC 22000 coordinator’s duties revolve around management of the entire certification process starting from its planning up to conducting the surveillance audit. In most cases, the coordinator takes up the position of a food safety team leader and hence becomes the person-in-charge of the FSMS. The main duties are:
- FSMS documentation maintenance and updating (manuals, procedures, and records)
- Food safety team and management reviews scheduling and conduct
- Internal audits coordination and tracking of the corrective action closure
- First point of contact with the certifying body for audit purposes
- Training records and competency updates
- Regulatory and scheme document updates influencing the FSMS
Given the nature of this job being cross-departmental, the job itself is normally placed under the management of a plant manager or director, who would be able to avoid any interference in making food safety-related decisions due to the influence of production and commercial matters. Where the company plans to obtain several certificates, for example, the FSSC 22000 and SA 8000 or BRCGS, then the coordinator would also handle their interface.
Qualifications Required for an FSSC 22000 Coordinator and Team Leader
There is no specific set of qualifications mandated by the FSSC 22000 scheme for its coordinator and team leader; however, certification bodies generally require demonstrable competence in food safety systems. The expected competencies include:
- Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Food Technology, Food Science, Microbiology, or a related field
- Training on HACCP, preferably as a practitioner or Lead Auditor
- Familiarity with ISO 22000 and FSSC 22000 additional requirements
- Experience in food manufacturing or quality roles for several years
- Training on internal audit of food safety management systems
- Good communication skills for managing multi-functional teams and auditors
As for who should take up the role of FSSC 22000 coordinator, it is mostly dependent on the competency of the organization internally. Some assign the existing quality manager for the role of coordinator, while others make a special role of a food safety coordinator within the quality department, especially when the organization grows larger than one production line. While certification organizations do not demand any special certificates or degrees from the organization, what they demand is evidence of the required competence of the individual through documents like training and audit participation.
Food Safety Team Leader vs FSSC 22000 Coordinator
Organizations may consider the food safety team leader and FSSC 22000 coordinator as two distinct job titles, especially in big organizations. The following is a comparison between the two different titles when they are separate.
Building an Effective FSSC 22000 Implementation Team
The FSSC 22000 implementation team is constituted at the start of the FSSC 22000 certification process and may be larger than the food safety team because the implementation process calls for the participation of HR, finance, and IT in addition to the food safety department. This team works on a short-term but focused basis, normally lasting for several months from gap analysis through certification auditing. Implementation teams normally undertake the following stages:
- Ensure formal commitment from the top management and allocation of resources
- Designate the food safety team leader and clarify his/her responsibility as the FSSC 22000 coordinator
- Perform gap assessment relative to the ISO 22000 and FSSC additional requirement standards
- Define document owners for procedures and prerequisite programs
- Establish an implementation schedule with milestones
- Train all personnel involved in the food safety management system prior to the certification audit
After certification has been attained, the role of the implementation team shifts to that of the food safety team, where the coordinator provides continuity for both surveillance and recertification phases. It is always advisable to have an end-of-project closure activity where lessons learned will be documented, such as identifying the prerequisite programs that took the most effort to fix, and the roles in the food safety management system that required further help.
Common Gaps in Food Safety Management System Roles
In most cases, certification organizations have identified nonconformities based on unclear roles within food safety management systems rather than technical nonconformities. These include:
- Irregular food safety team meeting without any minutes
- Team members lack evidence of training in their specific roles
- Insufficient level of coordination to implement the changes
- No backup members assigned in case of absence of any team member
- Not updating organizational chart due to any change in the staff
Taking care of such areas early will improve both audit readiness as well as FSMS implementation in day-to-day operations. In most cases, performing an annual internal self-assessment against such key issues, done by the coordinator of FSSC 22000 before the surveillance audit, will be enough to identify such areas and address any existing gaps.
In conclusion, having an effective team for the certification scheme does not depend on its size but rather on clarity regarding the responsibilities of the team members. Organizations that spend time on establishing an effective team with a good coordinator will always have an easy time when it comes to maintaining the certification and performing audits.
Key Takeaways
- A Food Safety Team of the FSSC 22000 FSMS is an obligatory multidisciplinary team that implements and maintains the FSMS.
- Roles and responsibilities of FSSC 22000 coordinator are documentation control, audit coordination and management review coordination.
- Requirements for food safety team leader positions usually consist of food science studies, HACCP certification and practical experience.
- Food safety team leader and FSSC 22000 coordinator roles can be assigned separately or together depending on the organizational structure.
- Well-defined FSMS roles prevent nonconformities during the audit.
FAQs
What are the roles and responsibilities of FSSC 22000 food safety team members?
Team members perform hazard analysis, monitoring, verification, and record keeping in their functional area under the direction of the team leader.
What are the responsibilities of an FSSC 22000 food safety team?
The team is responsible for developing, implementing, verifying and continual improvement of the food safety management system within the certified scope.
Who can be appointed as an FSSC 22000 coordinator?
A quality manager or food safety expert with HACCP training and manufacturing experience would usually be assigned.
What qualifications are required for an FSSC 22000 coordinator and team leader?
It includes food science qualifications, knowledge about HACCP and internal audit, but there is no set degree criterion under the system.
Can the food safety team leader and FSSC 22000 coordinator be the same person?
Usually, all companies have these two positions combined, mostly at smaller and medium companies.
How large should an FSSC 22000 implementation team be?
The size may depend on the company’s complexity but must involve all functions that influence food safety in any way, from production to procurement.
How often should the FSSC 22000 food safety team meet?
In most certified companies, such meetings take place monthly or quarterly with extra meetings after serious incidents or audits.