01
Buyer eligibility.
Major retailers, foodservice operators, and export customers increasingly treat ISO 22000 (or a GFSI-benchmarked equivalent) as a minimum supplier requirement.
Product & Regulatory
ISO 22000 — food safety, end to end.
A food safety management system that integrates HACCP principles, prerequisite programmes, and management-system discipline across every step of the food chain.
What it is
The international food safety management-system standard.
ISO 22000 brings together three traditions of food safety practice: the HACCP framework codified in Codex Alimentarius, the prerequisite programmes that underpin hygienic operations, and the management-system discipline familiar from ISO 9001. The 2018 revision adopted the high-level structure used across ISO management-system standards and sharpened the separation between operational prerequisite programmes and critical control points.
Certification confirms that your organisation has identified its food safety hazards, controls them at the right points through a combination of PRPs, OPRPs, and CCPs, and runs a management system that continually verifies and improves those controls. Unlike GFSI-benchmarked schemes (FSSC 22000, BRCGS, SQF), ISO 22000 is sector-agnostic and can be used anywhere along the food chain.
Who needs it
Any organisation in the food chain — primary production through retail.
Food processors, beverage manufacturers, ingredient suppliers, packaging producers, cold-chain logistics operators, contract caterers, restaurants and central kitchens, and primary producers all sit within scope. In India and the Gulf, ISO 22000 is often a baseline customer requirement for branded food manufacturers and exporters. Organisations targeting global retail buyers frequently pair ISO 22000 with FSSC 22000 to gain GFSI recognition.
Benefits
What a well-built BIFMA system earns you.
02
Regulatory alignment.
The standard aligns cleanly with FSSAI requirements in India, with EU and FDA export expectations, and with Codex HACCP — reducing duplicate work across markets.
03
Fewer recalls.
Proper hazard analysis, control validation, and traceability discipline reduce both the likelihood and the cost of a food-safety incident.
04
PRP discipline.
The standard's explicit distinction between PRPs, OPRPs, and CCPs forces clearer thinking about where real hazard control actually happens.
05
Supply-chain confidence.
Certified status reassures downstream buyers, insurers, and lenders; many tender processes pre-filter on it.
06
Platform for FSSC 22000.
An ISO 22000 management system plus relevant sector PRPs (ISO/TS 22002 family) is the foundation for GFSI-recognised FSSC 22000 certification.
Requirements, in outline
What the standard actually asks of you.
Clause 4 defines context and scope of the food safety management system. Clause 5 requires leadership commitment, a food safety policy, and defined roles — including the formal designation of a food safety team leader. Clause 6 covers planning: identification of food safety hazards, risks and opportunities, and food safety objectives.
Clause 7 addresses support (resources, competence, awareness, communication — both internal and external) and documented information, including PRPs based on sector-specific technical specifications (ISO/TS 22002-1 for food manufacturing, -3 for farming, -4 for food packaging, and others). Clause 8 is the operational heart of the standard: PRPs, traceability, emergency preparedness, hazard analysis, establishment of OPRPs and CCPs, monitoring, verification, control of non-conforming product, and withdrawal/recall. Clause 9 drives monitoring, internal audit, and management review; Clause 10 covers non-conformity and continual improvement.
Our approach
Five stages, from discovery to certificate.
01
Food safety team & scoping
Form the food safety team with operational leaders at the table, agree the scope, and map the flow diagrams that will drive hazard analysis.
02
Hazards & PRPs
Systematic hazard analysis against the flow, classification of control measures into PRPs, OPRPs, and CCPs, and validation of control measures where required.
03
Documentation & records
Policies, procedures, monitoring records, and verification schedules designed to match the reality of the plant — not a template library.
04
Internal audit & mock recall
Full internal audit cycle, a mock traceability and recall exercise, and management review to the depth a Stage 2 auditor will expect.
05
Certification audit
Stage 1 and Stage 2 attendance, findings response, and support through the first surveillance audit.
Timeline & investment
Honest ranges, not placeholder pricing.
A single-site food manufacturer with existing PRPs and basic HACCP practice typically reaches Stage 2 in ten to sixteen weeks. Sites starting without documented PRPs, or operating across multiple product lines with distinct hazard profiles, extend the window to four to six months.
Fees depend on site count, product complexity, number of production lines, and whether we deliver internal audits or train your team to do so. Certification body fees are separate. If GFSI recognition matters to your buyers, we often recommend scoping the engagement towards FSSC 22000 from the outset.
Frequently asked
Questions we answer on most BIFMA calls.
HACCP is a methodology for controlling food safety hazards. ISO 22000 is a full management-system standard that incorporates HACCP principles within a broader framework of leadership, risk management, PRPs, and continual improvement. A HACCP-only certificate signals hazard control; ISO 22000 signals system-level management.
FSSC 22000 combines ISO 22000 plus sector-specific PRPs (ISO/TS 22002 family) plus additional requirements, and is recognised by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI). Most major international retailers require GFSI-recognised schemes; domestic or regional customers often accept ISO 22000 alone.
No. FSSAI licensing is a statutory requirement for food businesses in India. ISO 22000 is voluntary and complementary. Most of our engagements run FSSAI licence activity in parallel where the client does not already hold a current licence.
OPRPs are control measures applied to significant hazards that are not managed by CCPs. The distinction matters because OPRPs are monitored with action criteria (rather than critical limits) and have different verification expectations. This separation was clarified in the 2018 revision.
Food manufacturing requires on-site observation — remote-only is not credible. A hybrid pattern (remote for planning and documentation, on-site for plant walks, PRP verification, and internal audits) works well for most engagements.
Related services
Often pursued alongside BIFMA.
HACCP
Seven-principle HACCP plans that survive regulator review and buyer audits.
Learn moreGMP
GMP programmes for pharma, nutraceutical, cosmetic, and food manufacturers — documented the way auditors want.
Learn moreFSSAI
Registration, licensing, and renewal under the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India.
Learn moreGet a readiness assessment for ISO 22000.
Half a day with a senior consultant, a clause-level gap report, and a candid timeline. No commitment beyond the assessment itself.