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IFS Food is an internationally recognised certification standard for auditing food manufacturers and processors, with a strong focus on product safety, quality, and legal compliance.
Achieving IFS Food certification shows that your business has robust systems in place to manage food safety risks, maintain product quality, and meet the expectations of retailers, brand owners, and regulators. It helps demonstrate that your products are produced under controlled conditions and that your organisation is committed to consistent standards across operations.
Our experienced team provides practical IFS Food support tailored to your business, products, and production environment. Whether you need a gap analysis, help improving systems, audit preparation, or ongoing compliance guidance, we help make the process clear, structured, and manageable.
IFS Food is a recognised food safety and quality certification standard designed for businesses that manufacture or process food products.
It provides a structured framework for managing product safety, quality, legality, and operational controls throughout the production process. The standard helps businesses demonstrate that they can consistently produce safe, compliant products while meeting customer and market expectations.
IFS Food certification is widely recognised across the food supply chain and is often required or strongly preferred by retailers, brand owners, and commercial buyers.
IFS Food certification is relevant to organisations involved in food manufacturing, processing, packing, or handling where product safety, quality, and legal compliance must be controlled and demonstrated.
IFS Food certification forms part of a wider food safety and quality management framework designed to help businesses manage risk, improve consistency, and demonstrate compliance. A successful system requires documented procedures, effective operational controls, strong traceability, and regular review.
Our consultants support organisations through every stage of certification preparation, helping strengthen systems, close gaps, and improve audit readiness.
IFS Food covers the systems and controls needed to manage food safety, product quality, legality, and operational consistency in food manufacturing and processing.
- Food safety and quality management systems
- HACCP-based controls and risk management
- Product specifications and legal compliance
- Traceability, recall, and incident management
- Site standards, hygiene, and operational controls
- Staff training, responsibilities, and competence
- Internal audits, verification, and continual improvement
IFS Food helps food businesses demonstrate that they have effective systems in place to consistently produce safe, compliant, high-quality products. It supports customer confidence and strengthens commercial credibility.
- Supports supplier approval and retailer confidence
- Demonstrates commitment to food safety and quality
- Helps reduce risk of recalls, complaints, and non-compliance
- Improves operational control and product consistency
- Builds trust with customers, regulators, and brand owners
To achieve IFS Food certification, organisations must implement and maintain effective controls across food safety, quality, traceability, legal compliance, and operational management.
- Documented food safety and quality procedures
- HACCP-based risk assessment and control measures
- Product specifications and compliance documentation
- Traceability and recall management systems
- Hygiene, housekeeping, and site control arrangements
- Internal verification, monitoring, and management review
IFS Food compliance is verified through structured audits that assess whether systems are documented, implemented, and effective in practice.
- Gap analysis and pre-assessment reviews
- Internal audits and compliance checks
- Review of food safety records and product documentation
- Assessment of traceability, hygiene, and operational controls
- Audit preparation and corrective action support
Certification is not the end of the process. Ongoing review, internal auditing, verification, and system updates are essential to maintain standards and support future audits. A typical ongoing compliance approach includes:
- Maintaining documented procedures and records
- Reviewing corrective actions and performance trends
- Updating controls when products, processes, or regulations change
- Delivering refresher training and internal support
- Preparing for surveillance or recertification audits
IFS Food certification is a strong step for food businesses that want to improve food safety, strengthen quality systems, and grow with confidence. A well-prepared approach reduces stress, improves audit outcomes, and supports stronger day-to-day operational control.
At Compliancy Group, we combine practical food compliance knowledge with hands-on support, helping organisations prepare for IFS Food certification, improve systems, and maintain a stronger compliance position.
We understand the practical demands of food manufacturing and the expectations of customers, certification bodies, and regulators. Our team helps identify gaps, strengthen controls, and improve audit readiness.
We combine certification support with real operational understanding, helping businesses apply IFS Food requirements in a way that works in practice, not just on paper.
We help businesses improve procedures, records, and supporting documents so systems are easier to manage, review, and present during audit.
From initial gap analysis through to audit preparation and ongoing improvement, we provide clear, practical support at every stage.
Our advice is tailored to your products, processes, and production environment. We focus on practical solutions that strengthen compliance and support long-term success.
Continued involvement beyond certification to maintain standards, prepare for surveillance audits and strengthen long-term governance maturity.
Our specialist team are here to help you through every stage of the certification process.
IFS is a recognised certification framework used across the food sector to assess food safety, quality, and legal compliance. IFS Food specifically applies to food manufacturers and processors.
Both are recognised food safety standards used in the food industry. IFS Food focuses on auditing food manufacturing processes and product compliance, while BRC for Food Safety is another widely used certification framework with its own structure and requirements.
IFS Food includes certification scoring levels, with higher scores reflecting stronger compliance performance. The audit also includes important criteria that must be met to achieve certification.
The current standard is IFS Food Version 8, which introduced updates to audit structure, requirements, and expectations.
A common first step is a gap analysis or pre-audit to review your current systems and identify what needs to be improved before the certification audit.
Key requirements include food safety management, HACCP controls, traceability, hygiene, product specifications, legal compliance, internal audits, and continual improvement.
IFS Food certification is generally valid for one year, subject to the certification body’s rules and successful ongoing compliance.
IFS Food is suitable for food manufacturers, processors, packers, and other food businesses that need to demonstrate strong control over food safety, quality, and legal compliance.
