ISO 22000:2018 Food Safety Management

The international food safety management system standard the other schemes build on.

Food Safety

Current edition2018
Requirement structureClauses 4 to 10
RecognitionNot GFSI alone

Overview

ISO 22000:2018 is the international standard for food safety management systems (FSMS). It defines requirements for managing food safety hazards along the food chain, combining the Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle, prerequisite programmes and HACCP principles. The 2018 edition aligned the standard with the ISO High Level Structure used by other management system standards.

Any organisation in the food chain can implement ISO 22000 and be certified by an accredited certification body — ISO itself does not certify. The standard is a recognised baseline for food safety management; however, it is not benchmarked by GFSI. Sites that need GFSI recognition typically choose a scheme built on ISO 22000, such as FSSC 22000.

Harmonised ISO structure
Shares its high-level structure with ISO 9001, so an organisation running both keeps one documentation system instead of two.
Two levels of PDCA
The 2018 edition runs the plan-do-check-act cycle at organisation level and again at operational level, which is how it links strategy to a critical control point.
Prerequisite programmes plus HACCP
The standard requires both, but leaves the prerequisite programme detail to the organisation. That flexibility is exactly what FSSC closes down.

Structure of the Standard

How the requirements are organised.

Ref	Requirement
4	Context of the organisationInterested parties, scope of the food safety management system.
5	LeadershipPolicy, roles, responsibilities and authority.
6	PlanningRisks and opportunities, food safety objectives, planning of changes.
7	SupportResources, competence, awareness, communication, documented information.
8	OperationPrerequisite programmes, traceability, emergency preparedness, hazard control, verification, control of nonconformity.
9	Performance evaluationMonitoring, internal audit, management review.
10	ImprovementNonconformity, corrective action, continual improvement, update of the system.

How it Compares

Positioning against neighbouring schemes.

Versus FSSC 22000
Same management system, different recognition. FSSC adds sector prerequisite programmes and additional requirements and carries GFSI recognition.
Versus BRCGS
BRCGS tells you what the site must look like. ISO 22000 tells you what the system must do. Buyers in retail generally want the former.

Products Covered

Frozen Raspberry IQF

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Markets that Expect It

European UnionThe Union as a single regulatory destination: the rules that apply everywhere, the entry procedure, and what still differs country by country.

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FAQ

Is ISO 22000 GFSI-recognised?

Not on its own. The recognised programme built on it is FSSC 22000.

Can we be certified to ISO 22000?

Yes, by an accredited certification body. The certificate is real; it simply does not answer a GFSI requirement.

Does it replace HACCP?

No. It requires a HACCP study and wraps a management system around it.

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Vorezan publishes reference information for buyers and suppliers. We are not a certification body, a customs broker or a guarantor of any third party. Regulatory references point to the framework in force at the review date; verify the current consolidated text and your own obligations before relying on them commercially.

Last updated: August 22, 2026Sources & references

ISO 22000:2018 Food Safety Management

Overview

Harmonised ISO structure

Two levels of PDCA

Prerequisite programmes plus HACCP

Structure of the Standard

How it Compares

Versus FSSC 22000

Versus BRCGS

Products Covered

Markets that Expect It

FAQ

At a Glance

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