ISO 22000 certification in France

ISO 22000 certification in France at a glance

ISO 22000 is the management-system layer on top of a duty French food businesses already carry. Article 5 of Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 requires operators to keep permanent procedures based on the HACCP principles; ISO 22000 adds policy, objectives, internal audit and management review around them. It also underpins the Foundation FSSC's FSSC 22000 scheme, which combines ISO 22000 with ISO 22002-x for prerequisite programmes, so many producers use it as a stepping stone or as the final certificate where a customer does not insist on the scheme. Certificates come from bodies accredited by Cofrac, the sole national accreditation body; Sterling does not certify. Sterling's Enschede office builds the food safety management system for producers and caterers in France, with Effivity and Sterling Academy included with the engagement.

Who needs ISO 22000 in France, and what happens without it

In France the question rarely comes from a law. It comes from the buyer, the regulator or the partner that wants proof before it signs. These are the organisations that get asked.

• Food and beverage manufacturersOperators must already run HACCP-based procedures, and ISO 22000 wraps them in a full management system.
• Packaging and ingredient suppliers to food producersCustomers extend food safety requirements to suppliers' sites.
• Producers weighing ISO 22000 against FSSC 22000The FSSC scheme uses ISO 22000 as one of its building blocks.
• Caterers and food-service groupsA certified system gives multi-site operators a consistent framework.

ISO 22000 requirements in France

Strip away the vocabulary and ISO 22000 requires a company to prove six things about keeping food safe from supplier to customer.

In France these six sit alongside the local laws and regulations listed under drivers below; one system can evidence both. The detail is on the global hub: ISO 22000 explained →

• ISO 22000 requirements, clause by clause in plain language
• The documents ISO 22000 expects
• ISO 22000 checklist

How to get ISO 22000 certified in France

One team from the Enschede office carries the work from scoping to certificate. Clients in France are served from Sterling's Enschede office, on-site where the work needs it and remotely otherwise.

1. Discovery call and scopeEntities, locations, regulators and target date, agreed before any proposal.
2. Gap assessment against ISO 22000 and the French requirements that apply to youControls you already run for your regulators and customers are reused, not rebuilt.
3. Your system built with your team in EffivityRisks, controls, evidence, incidents and reviews in one live system the auditor can see.
4. Internal audit, management review and corrective actionsYour internal auditors trained by Sterling; the evidence proven before the certification body arrives.
5. Certification body stage 1 and stage 2, then surveillanceAn accredited body audits and decides. Sterling supports the audits and the three-year cycle.

The Sterling Promise: 100% on-time completion, 100% success, 8,100+ client engagements.Sterling does not certify. Certification decisions stay with independent bodies.

• The ISO 22000 certification process, step by step
• ISO 22000 gap analysis
• ISO 22000 implementation plan
• ISO 22000 internal audit

How long does ISO 22000 certification take in France?

There is no standard duration: it depends on your scope and on how much of the system already runs. In France these are the factors that set the timeline.

• Existing HACCP and prerequisite programmes
• Number of sites and product categories
• Food defence and traceability controls
• Supplier approval processes

Sterling agrees a dated plan with you on the discovery call, once the scope is known.

• What drives the ISO 22000 timeline
• Scope and timeline estimator

How much does ISO 22000 certification cost in France?

The cost has two parts: the consulting work to build and prove the system, and the certification body’s audit fees, which are quoted separately. In France these factors move both.

• Number of sites and product lines
• Prerequisite programme upgrades
• Testing and monitoring
• Certification-body audit effort

Sterling gives one customised, all-inclusive proposal after the discovery call, never before the scope is agreed.

• What makes up the cost of ISO 22000

ISO 22000 consultants and certification bodies in France

Two different organisations are involved. A consultant helps you build the system and prove it works; an accredited certification body then audits or assesses it and decides. Keeping the two separate is what makes the result credible to buyers and regulators.

• Check that the body’s accreditation or approval covers ISO 22000 and your sector, and that its certificates can be verified online.
• Ask the consultant how the local requirements in France are mapped into the same system, so nothing runs twice.
• Ask for client references in your sector; Sterling’s client letters are available on request.
• Agree who owns the evidence and the tool after the engagement; with Sterling the system stays yours, in Effivity.

• Choosing an ISO 22000 certification body
• How to verify an ISO 22000 certificate

ISO 22000 in France: questions clients ask

More on ISO 22000 for French organisations

• ISO 22000: the complete guide
• Watch: How to implement ISO 22000
• Catering and hotels: ISO 22000 for the sector
• Feed and animal food: ISO 22000 for the sector
• Food and beverage manufacturing: ISO 22000 for the sector
• Food packaging manufacturing: ISO 22000 for the sector
• Ingredients and supplements: ISO 22000 for the sector
• Retail and wholesale: ISO 22000 for the sector
• Transport, storage and distribution: ISO 22000 for the sector
• ISO 22000 certification in France and every other standard Sterling delivers there

Other standards French businesses ask Sterling for

Organisations in France often combine ISO 22000 with one of these, under one management system where the scopes allow.

All 22 standards Sterling delivers in France →