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Vendor Approval ProgramPurposeThis program will ensure that materials supplied to Van Drunen Farms are sourced from approved vendors. All vendors will be reviewed and monitored on an on-going basis so that risk associated with vendors, raw materials and packaging is effectively managed. The vendor approval program will also monitor goods so that all incoming products are traceable. DiscussionAll incoming raw materials will be vetted via a risk analysis to determine which category they belong to. This product review will take place prior to goods being received at any VDF manufacturing facility. Based on HACCP and vulnerability risk assessments VDF has identified three risk categories for purchased goods. Vendors will be categorized according to the type of material they supply. For example, a vendor who sells cherry puree to VDF will be a Category II vendor based on the material supplied. Vendor and product categories are defined as follows:Category I – Vendor supplies lower risk items that represent the least chance of introducing physical, chemical or biological hazards based on the nature of the material or the amount of processing that takes place prior to arriving at VDF.Acids (HACCP-RA-0066) Packaging Materials (HACCP-RA-0081)Flavors and Colors (HACCP-RA-0077)Sugar, Syrup and Sweeteners (HACCP-RA-0073)Vitamins, Minerals, Salts and Amino Acids (HACCP-RA-0072)Oil and Butter (HACCP-RA-0069)Extracts (HACCP-RA-0067Category II – Vendor provides medium risk items. These incoming goods have a moderate risk of introducing physical, chemical or biological hazards. IQF Fruits, Vegetables and Herbs (HACCP-RA-0079)Fresh Fruits, Vegetables and Herbs (HACCP-RA-0078)Egg Product (HACCP-RA-0076)Cheese (HACCP-RA-0074)Seeds (HACCP-RA-0071)Purees and Juices (HACCP-RA-0070)Flour and Starch (HACCP-RA-0068)Category III –Vendor provides goods that are considered to be higher risk items. These incoming goods pose the greatest risk for introducing physical, chemical or biological hazards. Low Moisture Fruits (HACCP-RA-0080)Dried Fruits, Vegetables and Herbs (HACCP-RA-0075)Based on the material(s) supplied, all vendors will need to complete and return a Vendor Questionnaire (VA – 1021), Packaging Supplier Questionnaire (VA – 5016) or Farm Supplier Survey (VA – 5021). Vendors may also be asked to provide additional documentation requested in the survey. Vendor Questionnaires will include, but not be limited to, information regarding product safety, traceability, HACCP and GMP programs.Vendors may be asked to provide product information on an annual basis to keep quality documents current.Category I vendors may be approved based on review of a completed questionnaire, a current passing third party audit and product documentation if available (specification, COA, SDS). When approval is based only on supplier questionnaires, these will be re-issued every three years to ensure they remain up to date. Category II and Category III vendors will be required to have a current audit on file. Category II vendors will have an on-site audit by VDF or a third party on behalf of VDF once every 3 years if their audit standard is not a recognized GFSI scheme or if food quality or safety concerns arise, additional on-site audits may be required.Category III vendors will have an on-site audit by VDF or a third party on behalf of VDF every other year; not to exceed 24 months between audits if their audit standard is not a recognized GFSI scheme.Approved GFSI audit schemes include:Primus GFS StandardBRCSQF InstituteFood Safety System Certification (FSSC)International Featured Standards (IFS)Global G.A.PCanada G.A.P Documentation Request and ReviewPrior to starting a new project, approving product from a new vendor or reviewing a new item from an existing approved vendor, Purchasing or Sales will ask Quality Assurance Assistant (QCA) to send the appropriate vendor a request for information. Once the requested information is received the QCA will add it to the Vendor file located on the Q drive. When all of the requested information is received, the QCA will notify the Quality Compliance Coordinator (QCC) to review the documentation. QCC will review the documentation supplied based on the assigned risk category.Approved vendors will be determined to have provided all requested information regarding their programs and products. All of the documentation provided will be reviewed and determined to satisfy VDF quality standards. QCA will keep record of review date and send requests when documentation review is required.Conditional vendors will be approved for a limited product or time based on limited information provided. Conditional vendors will be asked to provide additional documentation in order to complete their file and move them to an approved vendor category. If a conditional vendor does not provide the additional information requested they will be deemed to be an inactive vendor and product may no longer be purchased from them. Disqualified vendor is a vendor who either will not provide requested documentation or fails vendor monitoring.Vendor MonitoringVDF will implement a vendor scoring program. All product supplied by a vendor will be reviewed upon receipt and inspected by VDF staff. Any problems with product will be noted and vendor will be notified. All infractions that require a Supplier Corrective Action Report (SCAR) to be issued will be tracked. Any vendor that has three SCAR issued within a 3 month period will be suspended. No purchases will be placed until vendor submits written root cause and corrective action for each SCAR issued and VDF quality approves responses. Vendor refusal to complete and return SCAR with acceptable corrective actions listed will lead to disqualification. Examples of issues that will result in a SCAR being issued include:Product not received at correct temperature. Product will be refused by VDF. Obvious signs of product deterioration such as rotting, visible mold growth, seepage. Product will be refused by VDF.Incoming containers are dirty or show signs of mishandling such as dirt, seals are missing or not intact, warped cases from water exposure, improper labeling.Incoming cases or containers are damaged and product is exposed. Product is shipped with items that are non-food grade. Product may be refused by VDF.Excessive stems, pits, seeds or leaves that are inherent to the product.Pests or signs of pest activity in incoming product, product containers or freight container (insects, feces, chew marks); product will be refused by VDF.Foreign material contamination that is not inherent to the product received (metal, plastic, glass). Review by Quality staff will determine is product is refused.Please note that the following will result in the automatic disqualification of a vendor:Any infraction that poses a food safety or health risk including but not limited to: undeclared allergens; uncontrolled cross contamination or introduction of allergens, biological or chemical contaminants; lots knowingly processed outside of set GMP standards. Not passing an accredited third party or regulatory (FDA, CFIA, USDA) auditNot passing a VDF on site auditAny type of intentional food fraud by a vendor. Food fraud may include, but is not limited to, “cutting” an item to incorporate one of a lesser quality for monetary gain, adding weight to powder using non-declared ingredients or substituting one ingredient for another. All incoming goods will be reviewed using organoleptic methods and analytical testing (HPTLC, HPLC, genetic testing PCR, FTIR) will be utilized when necessary. Analytical test method will be based on product type. ScopeQuality DepartmentPurchasing DepartmentProduct Line ManagersSales DepartmentResponsibilityQuality Department/Quality Director will oversee Vendor Approval Process.Quality Compliance Coordinator will review documentation provided for new and existing vendors and review new ingredient information prior to material being brought in to processing facilities.Quality Manager and Quality Technicians will perform risk assessments on new processes or materials that need to be evaluated. Quality Assurance Assistant will store and maintain an approved vendor list, save documentation in appropriate vendor files and monitor when each vendor is due to send in their annual documentation and/or survey.Purchasing Director will see that all PO’s for new vendors are held until vendor compliance review is completed and vendor is approved.Sales Director along with product line managers will work with Quality and Purchasing to make sure that new processes and products are presented and approved by Quality prior to new projects or purchases taking place.References21 CFR 110/21 CFR 111FSMAGMPBRCDefinitionsGMP – Good Manufacturing PracticesBRC – British Retail ConsortiumFSMA – Food Safety and Modernization ActVDF – Van Drunen FarmsHACCP – Hazard Analysis and Critical Control PointGFSI – Global Food Safety InitiativeGAP – Good Agricultural PracticesCOA – Certificate of AnalysisSDS – Safety Data SheetRecordsRecords will be kept as per table below:Record DescriptionResponsibilityStorage LocationStorage CycleDisposal MethodMode of IndexingVendor Compliance DocumentationQualityQ Drive vendor files5 yearDeleteVendor Name and MAS #Revisions HistoryDescriptions of each revision, as per table below:Version Number and DateChangesVersion 1: 08/06/2003First issueVersion 2: 03/03/2008ReformatVersion 3: 10/17/2008Reformat Version 4: 06/04/2009Review and controlVersion 5: 03/07/2013Review, add instructions relating to new Vendor Approval Questionnaire (VA-1021)Version 6: 6/23/14Review Version 7: 7/9/2015Added risk assessment categories, updated definitions, tasks and process based on BRC version 7 and FSMA. ................
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