✓The key to North American retail
Walmart, Costco, Kroger, Target and many other major retailers require SQF from their suppliers.
From gap assessment to certification audit
Get your site ready for SQF certification with a roadmap your team can execute.
A practical route for food manufacturers to build, implement and verify an SQF system, from appointing your SQF Practitioner to a clean certification audit.
✓Built around scheme requirements
✓Audit-focused
✓Designed for manufacturers
Certification readiness
Build evidence before the auditor arrives.
A certification system works best when it is implemented and tested well before the external audit, rather than assembled in the weeks before audit day.
Ed. 9
- Current SQF code edition
12 mo
certificate validity
1
SQF Practitioner required on site
14k+
certified sites worldwide
Why BRCGS Food Safety
Why food manufacturerschoose SQF
SQF is the GFSI-recognised standard most widely required by North American retailers. For manufacturers selling into that market, it is often the certification that unlocks the shelf.
✓Recognised worldwide
SQF is GFSI-benchmarked and accepted across more than 40 countries, with over 14,000 certified sites.
✓Food safety and quality in one
SQF can cover food safety alone or add a quality code, letting you certify both under a single programme.
What sets SQF apart: SQF requires a designated SQF Practitioner, a full-time employee who owns the system day to day. That built-in ownership is part of why the standard is trusted by the retailers that demand it, and why it holds up between audits rather than only on audit day.
Implementation roadmap
A phased route toSQF certification
The work is sequenced so that ownership, documentation, implementation and verification all come together before the certification audit.
1Appoint your SQF Practitioner
Designate a full-time employee, with completed HACCP training, to develop, implement and maintain the SQF system. This is a mandatory first step unique to SQF.
2Learn the code and define scope
Confirm which SQF code applies to your sector and level, define the products and processes in scope, and identify any exemptions to submit for approval.
3Register your site on the SQFI database
Register the site with SQFI, which is required before you can schedule the initial certification audit.
4Gap assess against the SQF code
Assess your current system against every applicable element of the code, and turn the gaps into a prioritised action plan with owners and deadlines.
5Build and document the SQF system
Develop the food safety plan built on HACCP, document the mandatory elements of the code, and put your prerequisite programmes and GMPs in place.
6Implement across the site
Put the system into everyday operation, train staff on GMPs, food safety and their responsibilities, and run it long enough to generate records before the audit.
7Run internal audits and verification
Complete internal audits across the code, close the findings, and verify the system is working through monitoring reviews and corrective-action checks.
8Certification audit and maintenance
Pass the audit with no critical non-conformances, close any majors before certification, then maintain the system and recertify each year.
Important: Certification requires an audit result with no critical non-conformances, and any major findings must be closed before the certificate is granted. Recertification is annual, with at least one audit in each three-year cycle conducted unannounced.
Critical focus
The SQF Practitioner owns the system, so set them up to succeed.
SQF Practitioner
Site registration
HACCP food safety plan
Prerequisite programmes & GMPs
Internal audits
No critical non-conformances
Annual recertification
Edition 10 transition
Scheme reference points
The requirementsbehind each step
✓The SQF Code
SQF is owned by the Safe Quality Food Institute. Audits currently run against Edition 9; Edition 10 was released in 2026 with audits expected to begin from 2027.
✓The SQF Practitioner
A designated, full-time employee with HACCP training is required to develop, implement and maintain the SQF system.
✓SQF levels
The programme covers SQF Fundamentals, the GFSI-benchmarked SQF Food Safety Code, and the SQF Food Safety and Quality Code.
✓Site registration
Sites must register on the SQFI assessment database before an initial certification audit can be scheduled.
✓Conditions to pass
Certification requires an audit result with no critical non-conformances, with any major findings closed before the certificate is issued.
✓Audit cycle
Recertification is annual, and at least one audit in each three-year cycle is conducted unannounced for GFSI-benchmarked codes.
Get started with AuditQ
Talk to an expert about your certification.
See exactly where your site stands against the standard and get a prioritised plan of what to close before your audit.
AQTalk to an expert30 min call, no strings attached✓Gap assessment against the SQF code
✓SQF Practitioner and training review
✓HACCP food safety plan validation
✓Prerequisite programme and GMP review
✓Internal audit across the code
✓Edition 10 transition planning
