Marks & Spencer has revealed that it has now moved to unannounced supplier audits in order to create resilient supply chains. The first of these was undertaken s early as April this year and follows discussions with Institute for Global Food Security Director and author of the report into the horsemeat scandal, Professor Chris Elliott of Queen’s University, Belfast.
Marks & Spencer was not found to have sold any products contaminated with horsemeat, but is keen to eliminate any potential for food fraud within its operations through it’s M&S supplier audit programme.
The company was keen to stress that the decision to undertake unannounced audits was not intended to trip up suppliers. Rather it was to ensure that mechanisms and controls to prevent food fraud were in place, to identify any issues and to correct them. The audits also cover food safety practices.
Is your supply chain watertight?
If suppliers have validated and verified food safety management systems in place and are compliant with the Food Safety Act 1990, they should have little to fear from an unannounced audit, especially if they have undertaken an Auditing Skills course. However, even if your own systems and processes are watertight, you need to ensure that your own suppliers are as fastidious about quality, safety, source and product authenticity. You also need to be aware of ways in which food fraud can occur.
Auditing and TACCP courses from Verner Wheelock
We offer a range of auditing courses from Auditing Skills to Supplier Auditing and Lead Auditor, all designed to prepare you for both internal and external audits. Our new one-day TACCP (Threat Assessment and Critical Control Point) workshop will provide all the information you need to help guard against potential fraud and contamination within your supply chain. For full details of dates, please see our training calendar.
Don’t forget that you can also book in-house courses. Please call Carole Dickason on 01756 700802 for more information.