HACCP certification in South Korea

HACCP certification in South Korea at a glance

HACCP in South Korea is a state scheme, not a private certificate. The Food Sanitation Act empowers the Minister of Food and Drug Safety to determine and publicly notify HACCP standards for each food, requires businesses that manufacture, process, cook, subdivide or distribute foods designated by Prime Ministerial Decree to apply them, and allows the Minister to certify businesses as businesses adopting HACCP. Certified businesses and their employees receive prescribed education and training, the Minister examines whether HACCP is applied, and a statutory body, the Korea Agency for HACCP Accreditation and Services, delivers safety management certification services for food and livestock products. Because the route is public, there is no KAB-accredited certification body to choose. Sterling's Tokyo office helps food businesses build the hazard analysis, critical control point plan, prerequisite programmes and records, with Effivity and Sterling Academy included with the engagement. Sterling does not certify.

Who needs HACCP in South Korea, and what happens without it

In South Korea 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.

• Manufacturers and processors of foods designated by Prime Ministerial DecreeThe Food Sanitation Act says businesses that manufacture or process designated foods shall apply the HACCP standards the Minister notifies.
• Cooks, subdividers and distributors of designated foodsThe same duty reaches those who cook, subdivide or distribute the foods the decree prescribes.
• Businesses seeking certification as a business adopting HACCPThe Minister may certify business operators obliged to apply HACCP, and operators that intend to apply it, as businesses adopting HACCP.
• Brand owners using contract manufacturersA certified operator may not entrust manufacturing of certified foods to another business, except in the cases the decree prescribes, such as a business certified for the same foods.
• Food exportersA documented, state-certified HACCP system gives evidence of hazard control, and overseas buyers set their own further requirements.

HACCP requirements in South Korea

Strip away the vocabulary and HACCP asks a food business to prove six things about how it controls food safety hazards.

In South Korea 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: HACCP explained →

• HACCP requirements, clause by clause in plain language

How to get HACCP certified in South Korea

One team from the Tokyo office carries the work from scoping to certificate. Clients across South Korea are served from Sterling's Tokyo 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 HACCP and the South Korean 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 HACCP certification process, step by step
• HACCP internal audit

How long does HACCP certification take in South Korea?

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

• Scope of foods and production lines
• Prerequisite programmes and facility upgrades
• Education and training for owners and employees
• Authority scheduling and application procedure

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

• Scope and timeline estimator

How much does HACCP certification cost in South Korea?

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 South Korea these factors move both.

• Number of lines and products in scope
• Facility and equipment upgrades
• Training for owners and employees
• Fees set by the authority, quoted separately from consulting

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

• What makes up the cost of HACCP

HACCP consultants and certification bodies in South Korea

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 HACCP and your sector, and that its certificates can be verified online.
• Ask the consultant how the local requirements in South Korea 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.

HACCP in South Korea: questions clients ask

More on HACCP for South Korean organisations

• HACCP: the complete guide
• Watch: How to implement HACCP
• HACCP certification in South Korea and every other standard Sterling delivers there

Other standards South Korean businesses ask Sterling for

Organisations in South Korea often combine HACCP with one of these, under one management system where the scopes allow.

All 22 standards Sterling delivers in South Korea →