ISO 22000 by industry
ISO 22000 for feed and animal food production: what integrators, pet food buyers and auditors expect of a certified mill
Clause by clause: ISO 22000:2018 requirements: every clause explained →
What changes when the organisation is a compound feed mill, premix plant or pet food factory: why integrators and pet food buyers ask, what belongs in the site's scope, where auditors sample ingredient hazards, carry-over, flushing and traceability, and how the system sits beside feed law and FSSC 22000.
Key points
- ISO 22000 names feed producers and animal food producers in its own scope, so a compound feed mill, premix plant or pet food factory certifies against the same standard as a food plant.
- Prerequisite programmes for this sector are selected against ISO 22002-6:2025, feed and animal food production, used with the common requirements of ISO 22002-100:2025.
- Auditors spend their time on raw material hazards at intake, carry-over between medicated and non-medicated batches, flushing and sequencing records, and a traceability run that reconciles through bins and silos.
- Pet food makers sell into households and retail chains, so buyers expect hygiene, labelling and recall discipline comparable to food for people.
Why feed and pet food producers are asked for ISO 22000
The request comes from the next link in the chain. Integrated poultry and pig producers, aquaculture farms, dairy groups and meat processors want assurance that the rations they purchase will not carry a hazard into animals, and through them into eggs, milk, meat or fish. Pet food brand owners and retail chains ask the same of a contract manufacturer before listing a product.
Where a customer writes GFSI recognition into its supplier requirements, the answer is FSSC 22000, which has a food chain category of its own for the processing of feed and animal food and builds on ISO 22000. How to choose between the routes is set out in HACCP vs ISO 22000 vs FSSC 22000: which one, and when.
Scope for a feed mill, premix plant or pet food factory
A mill's scope reads in the terms its customers use: complete and complementary feeds in mash, pellet and crumble for poultry and swine, mineral and vitamin premixes, or dry and wet pet food for dogs and cats. Inside sit intake, silo storage, dosing, grinding, mixing, conditioning, pelleting or extrusion, coating, bagging, bulk loading and the vehicles that deliver to farms.
Three scope mistakes recur in this sector:
- Leaving out the medicated line, or a toll-milling run made for another company, while that output leaves the same site.
- Excluding bulk delivery vehicles, bulk bins or third-party storage, where contamination and mix-ups between feeds are most likely.
- Describing the range as "animal feed" when the site also makes pet food or premixes, which changes the hazards, the ISO 22002 part and the auditor's competence.
The general rules are in ISO 22000 scope: sites, products and processes, and the mistakes that cost you.
Where the requirements bite in feed and animal food production
| Requirement area | What it means in a feed mill or pet food plant | Evidence the auditor samples |
|---|---|---|
| Prerequisite programmes | Building and equipment design that limits residues and dust, pest control around grain stores, cleaning of conveyors, bins and elevators, and control of transport, selected against ISO 22002-6:2025 with ISO 22002-100:2025 | Site walk of intake pits, silos and legs; cleaning and inspection records; pest trend reports; vehicle cleaning and previous-load records |
| Purchased materials and hazard analysis | Ingredients assessed by hazard category: natural toxins such as mycotoxins, chemical contaminants, undesirable substances, physical foreign matter and biological hazards, with supplier approval and intake testing in proportion to the risk | Ingredient risk assessment, approved supplier list, sampling plan and results at intake, rejected-load records |
| Carry-over, flushing and sequencing | Preventing active substances and additives from a medicated or high-inclusion batch reaching the next feed, especially one for a sensitive species | Production sequence rules, flushing records with quantity and destination of flush material, carry-over checks, cleaning between batches |
| Hazard control plan and validation | OPRPs and CCPs where the analysis calls for them, for example heat treatment in conditioning or extrusion for biological hazards, and magnets or screens for metal | Validation evidence behind temperature and time limits, monitoring records, magnet inspection logs, calibration of dosing scales and probes |
| Traceability, withdrawal and recall | Linking each dispatched load to ingredient lots, bins and production runs, even where bulk materials blend in storage | Timed trace from a farm delivery back to intake lots, bin-change records, retained samples, withdrawal procedure |
The method behind the plan is in Hazard analysis, OPRPs and CCPs: the hazard control plan.
Feed law, customer codes and other schemes
Feed businesses usually work under national feed and veterinary medicine rules: registration or approval of the premises, labelling of feeds, and conditions for making medicated feed. The certificate does not replace any of them. A well-built system keeps their evidence in the same records.
Customers add their own layer. Integrators set ingredient specifications, delivery conditions and complaint handling; pet food brand owners add specification sign-off, label and claim approval, and their own site audits. Where FSSC 22000 is the target, the same ISO 22000 system carries its additional requirements, such as food defence and food fraud mitigation. The PRP approach is explained in Prerequisite programmes and ISO 22002-1: what a plant needs, which applies with the feed part in place of Part 1.
What a feed or pet food engagement looks like
Duration depends on the condition of intake, storage and conveying equipment, the number of species and formulations, whether medicated feed is made, outstanding validation work and how long the plan must run to build records. The food safety team leader, the nutritionist or formulator, production and mill operators, QA and the laboratory, maintenance, purchasing and logistics all take part. With Design™, Sterling guides your team to build and own the system; with Drive™, Sterling carries more of the documentation, internal audit and readiness work while the mill keeps running.
How Sterling works with feed and pet food producers
A food safety system that holds from intake pit to delivery truck.
Our expert and experienced consultants build the system around your ingredient risks, production sequences and flushing rules, then test it with a traceability exercise and an internal audit before the certification body arrives. Records live in Effivity, included with the engagement, at no additional cost. Sterling does not certify; an independent, accredited certification body audits and decides. We ensure successful certification for our clients.
Book a free discovery callISO 22000 for feed and pet food: questions producers ask
Can a feed mill get ISO 22000 certification?
Yes. ISO 22000 applies to every organisation in the food chain and names feed producers and animal food producers in its scope, so a compound feed or premix plant certifies against the same standard as a food manufacturer.
Which prerequisite programme standard applies to animal feed?
ISO 22002-6:2025, feed and animal food production, used together with ISO 22002-100:2025, which sets the common PRP requirements across the food, feed and packaging chain. ISO 22002-1 is the food manufacturing part and is not the one a feed mill selects.
Is ISO 22000 suitable for pet food manufacturers?
Yes. ISO 22000 names animal food producers in its scope, and the prerequisite programme part for the sector, ISO 22002-6:2025, is titled feed and animal food production. Where a retailer or brand owner asks for GFSI-recognised certification, FSSC 22000 builds on the same ISO 22000 system.
How does ISO 22000 deal with medicated feed carry-over?
As a chemical hazard in the hazard analysis, controlled through production sequencing, flushing, cleaning between batches and verification that residues stay within the limits your customers and the law set.
ISO 22000 by industry
Every guide in the ISO 22000 series is written for one question and links back to the hub for the whole picture.
- ISO 22000 for catering, hotels and food service
- Decision guide
- ISO 22000 documentation
- Effivity for ISO 22000
- ISO 22000 for feed and animal food production
- ISO 22000 for food and beverage manufacturing
- ISO 22000 for food packaging manufacturing
- ISO 22000 gap analysis
- ISO 22000 for ingredients, additives and supplements
- ISO 22000 for retail and wholesale
- ISO 22000 for transport, storage and distribution
Keep exploring
Explore more about ISO 22000
Watch a video on how to implement ISO 22000 here.
Watch a video on ISO 22000 requirements here.
ISO 22000 resources
Services for ISO 22000
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