ANSI Launches Voluntary Pilot Accreditation Program for Certification Bodies Seeking Accreditation for FDA-Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) - Foreign Supplier Verification Programs

NEW YORK, Oct. 23, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The American National Standards Institute (ANSI), coordinator of the U.S. voluntary standardization system, has initiated a Voluntary Pilot Accreditation Program for Certification Bodies seeking accreditation to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) - Foreign Supplier Verification Programs. ANSI is accepting applications for this new program from Monday, October 16, 2017, through Friday, December 1, 2017.

The FDA FSMA Final Rule on Foreign Supplier Verification Programs  (FSVP) for Importers of Food for Humans and Animals requires that importers perform certain risk-based activities to verify that food imported into the United States has been produced in a manner that meets applicable safety standards. The rule, with first compliance dates that began on May 30, 2017, is the result of outreach to industry, consumer groups, the agency's federal, state, local, tribal, and international regulatory counterparts, academia, and other stakeholders.

In response, ANSI has launched a Voluntary Pilot Accreditation Program for Certification Bodies (CBs) seeking accreditation to the FDA FSMA Final Rule. The objective of ANSI's voluntary program is to evaluate CBs on an independent third-party basis to determine their compliance with the requirements of FDA regulations; the international standard ISO/IEC 17065, Conformity assessment – Requirements for bodies certifying products, processes, and services; and pertinent certification scheme requirements. The CBs that comply with such requirements will be recognized as ANSI Accredited Certification Bodies (ANSI ACBs) to conduct food safety audits and issuing of certifications on foreign food suppliers in accordance with FDA–FSMA - Foreign Supplier Verification Programs on a voluntary basis.

By providing CBs with the opportunity to execute foreign supplier audits under this pilot accreditation program, ANSI serves to enhance the rigor of the audits and improve the safety of imported foods.

Certification Bodies interested in participating in the ANSI Voluntary Pilot Accreditation Program are encouraged to request the ANSI application package. The completed application package must be submitted to ANSI by the deadline of December 1, 2017.

To obtain an application package for this new pilot accreditation program, please contact Reinaldo Figueiredo (rfigueir@ansi.org; 202.331.3611), ANSI senior program director, product/process/services accreditation programs.

About ANSI

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) is a private non-profit organization whose mission is to enhance U.S. global competitiveness and the American quality of life by promoting, facilitating, and safeguarding the integrity of the voluntary standardization and conformity assessment system. Its membership is comprised of businesses, professional societies and trade associations, standards developers, government agencies, and consumer and labor organizations. The Institute represents the diverse interests of more than 125,000 companies and organizations and 3.5 million professionals worldwide.

The Institute is the official U.S. representative to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and, via the U.S. National Committee, the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC).
For more on ANSI accreditation, visit www.ansiaccreditation.org.

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SOURCE American National Standards Institute