Comparative Study of Certification Schemes for Food Safety Management Systems in the European Union Context

Public food organizations have come in a relatively short period of time to operate in a highly complex business environment. As a result, quality and especially food safety became elements with new values, in a multidimensional approach of economy consumption. Simultaneously, the globalization of economic and social life has highlighted the need for a unitary approach on how to produce quality and safe products for the final consumer. For this reason, at the international level a series of standards have emerged that organizations have to follow to design, implement and certify food quality and safety management systems that benefit all parties involved. The present paper aims at carrying out a comparative study of certification schemes of food safety management systems in an attempt to give organizations the opportunity to understand what type of quality management system is appropriate to the organizational framework in which they are located, according with established objectives. The research is based on a comprehensive study of specific literature, articles and reference papers, the collection of data being carried out through comparative analysis of international standards, private certification schemes for food safety management products and systems, in the desire to clarify the different approaches but also the similarities and differences between them.