IFS Progress – Food Assessment: Food Safety System
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IFS Progress – Food Assessment: Food Safety System
IFS Progress – Food was developed to support food manufacturers that need to demonstrate structured progress toward recognized food safety requirements but are not yet ready for full certification. It is a standardized, stepwise food safety assessment approach designed for small and medium sized food manufacturers.
The program offers a flexible, credible and internationally recognized framework that helps you develop essential food safety processes aligned with HACCP according to Codex Alimentarius and GFSI Global Markets. As part of the broader global IFS framework, it supports consistent evaluation across international supply chains.
What is IFS Progress – Food?
IFS Progress – Food is a development program for small and medium sized food manufacturers that are not yet ready for full IFS Food certification. It provides a structured approach to building essential food safety processes and enhancing your ability to meet customer and regulatory expectations.
The program supports organizations in strengthening their food safety practices and demonstrating visible commitment to continual development. It enables suppliers to build the competence needed to advance toward more mature food safety requirements and also prepare for IFS Food certification.
IFS Progress – Food helps you achieve:
- Step-wise approach to develop a food safety management system
- A structured pathway toward IFS Food certification
- Demonstrated commitment to food safety and continual improvement
- Strengthened food safety culture
- Greater transparency for customers and supply chain partners
- More consistent processes that reduce the likelihood of incidents
The program is built as a stepwise development framework aligned with HACCP according to Codex Alimentarius and GFSI Global Markets requirements. It consists of three transitional levels: Basic, Basic + HACCP, and Intermediate, allowing companies to begin at the stage that matches their maturity.
Each level is generally completed within one year. The overall program is typically expected to lead toward meeting the requirements of the IFS Food Standard within a maximum of three years, with risk based exceptions permitted.
Value of IFS Progress – Food assessment
A letter of approval to the IFS Progress – Food program by an independent third party like DNV demonstrates your current level of food safety implementation and your commitment to continual improvement. It provides transparent evidence of your progress and gives customers confidence in your development efforts.
It also supports acceptance in supplier development programs used by retailers and brand owners.
As a result, you get:
- Clear demonstration of commitment to food safety and continual improvement
- Improved readiness for future IFS Food certification
- Objective insights from external auditors to identify gaps and improvement opportunities
- Reduced risk through stronger process control and HACCP implementation
- Recognition by retailers and brand owners who use the program for supplier development
- Transparent visibility of your current maturity level for customers and supply chain partners
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Certificates
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How to get an IFS Progress – Food assessment
The IFS Progress - Food requirements consist of 3 different levels; a self-assessment tool is available from the IFS website, and the completion of the self-assessment, including the addressing of any gap, is the first step to select the desired level.
DNV is an accredited third-party certification body, recognized for the IFS Progress - Food program and can support throughout the journey both relevant IFS approved training programs, on-site pre-assessment for all levels, and food safety management system certification audits.
As a DNV customer, you also get access to a suite of digital tools that can help you ensure compliance, continually improve and manage your entire certification journey with us.
Learn how to get started and be certified
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Obtain the standard:
Get a licensed copy of the relevant standard and familiarize yourself with the requirements to decide if certification/registration to this standard makes good sense for your organization.
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Review available literature and apply digital tools
Explore available literature, guidelines from the standard owners (e.g. ISO/TS 9002 for ISO 9001, ISO 14004 for ISO 14001) and digital sources and tools that can assist with implementation. Note that as a DNV customer you get access to tailored tools that can assist you.
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Assemble a team and define strategy:
To implement a management system should be a strategic decision for the entire organization. Senior management must be involved in the decision, committed and involved in shaping the system. They decide the business strategy the management system should support. In addition, you need a dedicated team to develop and implement your management system.
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Determine competence needs:
First, your team implementing and maintaining the management system needs a thorough understanding of the chosen standards. Later on, the wider organization needs awareness training. DNV offers a variety of public and in-house courses worldwide that meets your competence training needs at all levels within your organization.
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Review consultant options:
Independent consultants can advise on a workable, realistic, and cost-effective strategy plan for implementation if you do not have this competence or capacity already.
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Develop management system documentation:
Decide on an appropriate platform for your documented information (e.g. software, process map- or SharePoint-based). The right platform is important to ensure effective management, communication and implementation.
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Determine, manage and document processes:
First identify key processes – what they are, how they work, and how they interact. Each process should have a clear purpose, defined responsibilities, and expected outputs. The level of documented information needed depends on the organization’s size, complexity, and the importance of each process, but must include relevant processes and other documented information needed to deliver on intended outcomes and comply with the chosen standard’s requirements.
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Implement management system:
Clear communication and necessary competence training are essential elements. During the implementation phase, you will work to ensure that your organization is working according to defined and documented processes. Once successful, you can prove system’s compliance and effectiveness.
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Select a certification body/registrar:
Selecting the right certification body/registrar can make a difference throughout your certification journey. DNV offers a trusted partnership approach, a risk-based approach and range of free digital tools that help you manage your certification journey before, during and after the audit.
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Consider a pre-audit gap analysis:
Consider a preliminary evaluation by your certification body/registrar to identify and correct nonconformities before starting the official certification process. The purpose is to identify areas of non-conformance or weaknesses, allowing you to correct these before you begin the official certification process.
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FAQ – IFS Progress
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IFS Progress – Food helps developing food manufacturers strengthen their food safety practices in a structured and credible way. An assessment from an independent third party demonstrates your current level of implementation, commitment to continual improvement and progress toward meeting more advanced food safety expectations. For many it can be a stepping stone to future IFS Food certification
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IFS Management GmbH (IFS) is a joint venture of the French retail association FCD and the German retail association HDE who is responsible for a set of internationally recognised standards used to assess food safety, product quality, and supplier reliability across global supply chains. Developed in collaboration with retailers, brand owners, and industry experts, IFS standards provide a consistent framework for evaluating suppliers and ensuring that products and processes meet defined safety and quality expectations.
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