Food Safety Certification of a Dairy Farm with ISO 22000 International Standard

Introduction: Primary production has important influence on the safety of milk products. Microbiological hazards can be introduced both from the farm environment and from the milking animals themselves. Potential also exists for the contamination of milk with residues of veterinary drugs, pesticides and other chemical contaminants. ISO 22000:2005 (Food Safety Management Systems – Requirements for any Organization in the Food Chain) provides an internationally recognized framework for establishing a food safety management system that combines prerequisite programs (PRPs), HACCP principles, system management and interactive communication.

Purpose: The purpose of our study was to evaluate whether a dairy farm can comply with ISO 22000 and gain certification by an independent certification body.

Methods: The study took place in a Mexican dairy farm producing about 60,000 liters a day with 1,700 cows. Under the commitment of the top management, a food safety leader was enrolled and a food safety team was constituted. Its role was to establish the management system according to the requirements of ISO 22000:2005 and ensure its effective implementation in the field by the 47 workers.

Results: The establishment of an ISO-22000 based food safety management system took approximately 1 year and lead to the successful certification in the course of 2012. We show that ISO 22000 is a food safety standard applicable not only to food manufacturing but also to other steps of the food chain, including farming.

Significance: To our knowledge, this is the very first dairy farm certified with ISO 22000 worldwide. To ensure food safety at all stages of the food chain, it is important that clear communication and interactions exist between all parties within an integrated food safety management system. This can be facilitated by ISO 22000 standard.