Accredited certification for food safety audits under 10 of the 11 possible scopes

The Jamaica National Agency for Accreditation (JANAAC) has received authorisation from the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as an accreditation body under its Accredited Third-Party Certification programme.

As such, JANAAC has been recognised by the FDA as having the authority to accredit certification bodies to conduct food safety audits under 10 of the 11 possible scopes.

These are acidified foods, dietary supplements, low acid canned foods, Juice Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (Juice HACCP), Medicated Feed Current Good Manufacturing Practices (Medicated Feed CGMPs), Preventive Controls for Animal Food, Preventive Controls for Human Food, Produce Safety, Seafood Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (Seafood HACCP) and Shell Eggs.

JANAAC is one of four FDA-approved accreditation bodies globally and the sole such entity in the English-speaking Caribbean. Accredited Third-Party Certification is a voluntary programme, under which the FDA recognises accreditation bodies that will have responsibility for validating third-party certification entities.

Food safety audits

These bodies will be authorised to conduct food safety audits and certify foreign food facilities, such as farms and factories. This certification may also be used in situations where the FDA requires that imported products are validated before entering the US.

It can also establish eligibility for participation in the Voluntary Qualified Importer Programme (VQIP), which offers expedited review and entry of food.

Senator Aubyn Hill, minister of industry, investment and commerce, yesterday (July 19) presented the FDA’s validation certificate to JANAAC Chief Executive Officer Sharonmae Shirley during a semi-virtual ceremony held at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel in New Kingston.

Hill, who delivered the main address, boasted that the FDA’s approval of JANAAC represents a major achievement for Jamaica and the wider region, noting that the manufacturing and export industries across the region “will benefit from job creation, market access and product diversification for exports to the US”.

Hill stated that JANAAC’s Mutual Recognition Agreements with regional and international accreditation corporations enable those entities to have their results accepted worldwide, underscoring that “that is important”.