Sanitary procedures are part of day-to-day life in institutional catering kitchens. Serving high-quality meals means, first and foremost, guaranteeing consumer safety. Regulations impose obligations on restaurateurs, so they need to be able to trust their suppliers. To protect human health, multiple standards and certifications have been created. One of the best-known of these is BRC (British Retail Consortium) certification. Here are the reasons why this recognition offers a promise of quality to food service professionals.
What is BRC certification?
The BRC is a trade association of some 170 British retailers, including big names like Tesco and Marks & Spencer. In 1998, the consortium published the first edition of its Food Technical Standard and Protocol for food suppliers. Since then, seven further editions have been released. That methodology defines the rules and practices that companies must adhere to in order to be distributed by British shops.
These days, BRC certification still concerns the British market but has also established itself more broadly as a standard for good practices to be applied in the food sector. Inspection offices are designated to monitor the implementation of recommendations, by means of questionnaires, audits and site visits, in order to guarantee production quality.
The assessments cover many criteria, concerning both the performance of preventive and corrective actions and the company’s strategic choices. In addition to standards compliance, staff training, and product and process inspections, a real strategy of continuous improvement is required in order to minimise risks.
A promise of trustworthiness, for quality and safety
Ensuring food safety is the most essential issue for the entire agrifood chain, from farmers to restaurateurs, by way of processors and distributors. This health imperative is based on compliance with HACCP (hazard analysis and critical control points) rules: identifying hazards, determining how they can be prevented, setting up a detection system and defining corrective actions in the event of any deficiencies. HACCP standards are folded into continuous improvement work, aimed at constantly enhancing methods and practices in order to reduce risks.
The certification criteria look at the whole company: HACCP methodology of course, but also standards compliance, product and process inspections, staff training, management strategies, and more.
For food service professionals, certification is a promise of trustworthiness. Serving food that meets the highest safety requirements offers the assurance of not being harmful to consumer health. The choice of a BRC-accredited supplier provides a response to that imperative. The institution of demanding procedures and inspections is proof of that supplier’s trustworthiness.
Cocotine is proud to have earned BRC certification, in recognition of the reality of its commitment to quality. In line with our values, it is proof of the hard work done by our co-op farmers and by the employees at our processing plants, to offer the best egg products to institutional caterers. Find all our advice in our kit for becoming a 100% quality chef!
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