ANSI/ANAB Accredits Quality Certification Services to Certify Foreign Food Supplies under U.S. FDA-FSMA Program

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI), coordinator of the U.S. voluntary standardization system, has accredited Florida Certified Organic Growers, Inc. DBA Quality Certification Services in accordance with the international standard ISO/IEC 17065, Conformity assessment—Requirements for bodies certifying products, processes, and services; and pertinent certification scheme requirements and regulations under the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA)’s Food Safety Modernization Act, or FSMA. ANSI’s conformity assessment accreditation programs were reorganized in December 2018 under the ANSI National Accreditation Board (ANAB) brand, a wholly owned subsidiary of ANSI.

Quality Certification Services provides certification services to assure suppliers, retailers, regulators, and consumers that an independent organization has reviewed a product’s manufacturing process and determined that the product complies with specific standards for safety, quality, sustainability, or performance. Its certification programs cover food, food equipment, organic products, dietary supplements, bottled water, and many other products. ANSI accredited Quality Certification Services, to conduct food safety certification for the following programs: a) 21 CFR Chapter 1, Subchapter A Part 1, Subpart M – Third-Party Accreditation (TPA) Final Rule; and (b) Foreign Supplier Verification Programs for Importers of Food for Humans and Animals.

The FSMA empowers the FDA to take proactive steps to prevent the sale, distribution, and consumption of tainted food products by recognizing accreditation bodies such as ANSI/ANAB to assess the competence of food safety product certification bodies according to ISO/IEC 17065 and FDA regulations. The goal is to create a food safety system that supports the prevention of contamination—rather than reacting to contagions that have already occurred.

“We’re pleased to announce Quality Certification Services’ accreditation under the FDA’s Accredited Third-Party Certification Program of the FSMA,” said Lane Hallenbeck, executive director of ANAB. “Accreditation is a critical component of the conformity assessment activities that help ensure food safety practices meet essential requirements across borders and throughout the supply chain.”

ANSI/ANAB Accreditation for Food Safety
Through its product certification accreditation program, ANSI/ANAB currently accredits 34 certification bodies that operate under a number of certification schemes dedicated to assure food safety, in accordance with ISO/IEC 17065, General requirements for bodies operating product certification systems. ANSI/ANAB is also recognized by the FDA, in the FSMA program, as an accreditor of Management Systems certification bodies under ISO/IEC 17021, Conformity Assessment- Requirements for bodies providing audit and certification of management systems.

Laws in California, Illinois, Arizona, West Virginia, Texas, and New Mexico, as well as some local jurisdictions, require food handlers within their limits to have a food-handling training certificate from an ANSI/ANAB-accredited certificate program, demonstrating compliance with ASTM E2659, Standard Practice for Certificate Programs, an American National Standard (ANS). Twenty-six states have adopted food-protection manager certification requirements, which ANSI/ANAB accredits under the Conference for Food Protection’s Standard for Accreditation of Protection Manager Certification Programs.

Read more about ANSI Accreditation for Food Safety, and watch a brief video to learn how ANSI accreditation provides food safety assurance.

For more information, contact Reinaldo Figueiredo, senior program director, product/process/services Accreditation Programs (RFigueir@ansi.org), or visit ANSI’s accreditation website.