To better serve its pharmaceutical and food packaging clients, Canadian short-run offset packaging specialist SoOPAK has bolstered its internal systems by earning the International Featured Standard (IFS) certification and Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) certification, making its facility compliant with HACCP food safety regulations.
With operations in Mississauga and Scarborough, Ont., SoOPAK is a manufacturer of short-run packaging production starting at 500 pieces. The two new certifications join SoOPAK’s existing ISO 9001:2015 certification, an advanced upgraded standard highlighting the firm’s commitment to quality management and customer satisfaction.
International Featured Standard (IFS) Food certification is a GFSI-recognized standard for certifying the safety and quality of food products and production processes. IFS-certified companies produce a product or provide a service that complies with customer specifications, while continually working on process improvements. The standard is supported by retailers, food service companies and food manufacturers, who are all part of the IFS technical committees, and specifies the criteria that shall be fulfilled at a given level. An IFS certification demonstrates that SoOPAK has established systems suitable for ensuring food and/or product safety, and that it has considered and implemented customer specifications.
HACCP certification recognizes that a food business has developed, documented and implemented systems and procedures in accordance with HACCP. It is granted by an external certification authority that has the necessary knowledge and skills to undertake an assessment of the HACCP system or HACCP plan. By earning this designation, SoOPAK says it demonstrates its commitment to producing or trading in safe food. To gain certification by a certification provider, SoOPAK was required to undergo an audit or assessment of its food safety and HACCP policies and procedures.
“As our client base continues to expand and grow, we’re catering to an increasing number of pharmaceutical and food packaging customers,” says YaJun (Carol) Jiang, President of SoOPAK. “Earning the IFS certificate is a logical result of our strongly expanding activities in this marketplace. To provide first class service to these clients that require strict adherence to quality and safety, we are continually seeking ways to assure our valued customers that we operate at the highest quality standards and produce innovative, high quality, short-run customer-focused packaging products and services all under our own roof.”
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