Pallas Foods has become the sixth company in the world to achieve certification to a major new food safety standard, which covers the safe intake, storage, assembly and distribution of food products.
The Dublin-based food distributer was presented with its certificate during a special ceremony at the National Standards Authority of Ireland’s (NSAI) offices earlier this month.
The certification scheme, known as FSSC 22000, provides a 'framework for organisations to effectively manage its food safety responsibilities, helping to ensure consumer trust in the supply of safe food and drinks'.
“We are delighted to have achieved the FSSC 22000. This certification is recognition of the dedication the entire Pallas Foods team place on delivering products with the highest standards of safety, reliability and quality,” said Ian Smith, director of operations at Pallas Foods.
“Everyone prides themselves on delivering the best quality of service and products to our customers every day and for that I thank them. This award reflects their unwavering commitment to safety and quality,” he added.
Third-Party Audit
Like all FSSC 22000-certified organisations, Pallas Foods reportedly had to successfully complete a third-party audit, ensuring that their food safety systems meet stringent requirements.
“On behalf of the National Standards Authority of Ireland, I want to sincerely congratulate everyone at Pallas Foods for achieving certification to this major, internationally-recognised standard,” said Geraldine Larkin, NSAI chief executive.
“Achieving certification takes hard work and dedication. It can only occur when a team of smart, competent, dedicated people work together, but it also takes great leadership and a team effort,” she added.
One of the benefits of FSSC 22000 for food producers and distributors is that it enables them to focus their food safety efforts on scientific and technical advances, and their audit resources on continuous improvement.
FSSC 22000
The certification scheme is owned and governed by a non-profit foundation, named FSSC 22000, and is recognised by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI), an international food safety watchdog.
“This is a significant achievement for Pallas Foods and I want to congratulate them on being not only the sixth company in the world to use FSSC 22000 for storage and transportation, but the first company in Ireland and UK, and the second in Europe” said FSSC Technical Director, Aldin Hilbrands.
“By using FSSC 22000, it is demonstrating clearly that the company has a robust Food Safety Management System in place that meets the requirements of its customers and consumers,” he added.
Pallas Foods’ certification to FSSC 22000 applies to the company’s Dublin facility and it 'plans to roll it out to its other facilities in future'.
© 2018 Checkout – your source for the latest Irish retail news. Article by Donna Ahern. Click subscribe to sign up for the Checkout print edition.
