BRCGS V9 (5.3 Management of allergens)

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• Pet food and animal feed manufacturers certificated to the Standard are required to meet the appropriate allergen management legislation in the country of intended sale of the products. Therefore, if there is no legislation relating to allergens in pet food/animal feed, this section of the Standard may be considered ‘not applicable’ for pet food or animal feed destined for those countries.
  In some parts of the world, allergen claims (e g. gluten- or dairy-free) are made on pet food or animal feed products. Therefore, where a site makes an allergen claim on a pet food or animal feed, it is required to meet all of the requirements within section 5.3.

• Fundamental SOI<br>The site shall have a system for the management of allergenic materials which minimises the risk of allergen contamination (cross-contact) of products and meets legal requirements for labelling in the country of sale.

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

5.3.1 Assessment of raw materials to establish the presence and likelihood of contamination (cross-contact) by allergens

• The site shall carry out an assessment of raw materials to establish the presence and likelihood of contamination (cross-contact) by allergens.

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

• This shall include a review of the raw material specifications and, where required, the acquisition of additional information from suppliers (e.g. through questionnaires to understand the allergen profile of the raw material, its ingredients and the factory in which it is produced).

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

5.3.2 Allergen-containing materials

• The company shall identify and list allergen-containing materials handled on site.

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

• This shall include raw materials, processing aids, intermediate and finished products, and any new product development ingredients or products.

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

5.3.3 Documented risk assessment

• A documented risk assessment shall be carried out to identify routes of contamination (cross-contact) and establish documented policies, and procedures for handling raw materials and intermediate and finished products, to ensure cross-contamination (cross-contact) is avoided. This assessment shall include:

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

• consideration of the physical state of the allergenic material (e.g. powder, liquid, particulate)

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

• identification of potential points of cross-contamination (cross-contact) through the process flow

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

• assessment of the risk of allergen cross-contamination (cross-contact) at each process step

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

• identification of suitable controls to reduce or eliminate the risk of cross-contamination (cross-contact).

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

5.3.4 Allergen procedures

• Procedures shall be established to ensure the effective management of allergenic materials to prevent cross-contamination (cross-contact) of products not containing the allergen. These shall include, as appropriate:

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

• physical or time segregation while allergen-containing materials are being stored, processed or packed

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

• the use of separate or additional protective overclothing when handling allergenic materials

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

• use of identified, dedicated equipment and utensils for processing

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

• scheduling of production to reduce changes between products containing an allergen and products not containing the allergen

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

• systems to restrict the movement of airborne dust containing allergenic material

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

• waste handling and spillage controls

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

• restrictions on food brought onto site by staff, visitors and contractors and for catering purposes.

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

5.3.5 Rework

• Where rework is used, or reworking operations are carried out, procedures shall be implemented to ensure rework containing allergens is not used in products that do not already contain the allergen.

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

5.3.6 Alibi labelling

• Where a justified, risk-based assessment demonstrates that the nature of the production process is such that cross-contamination (cross-contact) from an allergen cannot be prevented, a warning should be included on the label.

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

• Legislation, national guidelines or codes of practice shall be used when making such a warning statement.

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

5.3.7 Allergen Free claims

• Where a claim is made regarding the suitability of a food for individuals with a food allergy or food sensitivity (sometimes referred to as a ‘food hyper-sensitivity’), the site shall ensure that the production process is fully validated to meet the stated claim and the effectiveness of the process is routinely verified. This shall be documented.

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

5.3.8 Allergen Cleaning processes

• Equipment or area-cleaning procedures shall be designed to remove or reduce to acceptable levels any potential cross-contamination (cross-contact) by allergens.

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

• The cleaning methods shall be validated to ensure that they are effective and the effectiveness of the procedure routinely verified.

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

• Cleaning equipment used to clean allergenic materials shall either be:

• identifiable and specific for allergen use

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

• single use

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical

• effectively cleaned after use.

  Compliant

  Minor

  N/A

  Major

  Critical