Irwindale, CA – Ready Pac Foods, Inc. is pioneering implementation of Safe Quality Food (SQF) certification in all the company’s facilities and announced that the Florence, New Jersey facility has achieved SQF Level 3 certification, the highest level possible. Ready Pac is now one of very few fresh cut facilities to have achieved this level of certification in the U.S.
During the certification process the Florence facility achieved the highest audit rating possible for SQF. The company chose to pursue the stringent SQF certification system-wide to align their own desire for standardized and harmonized quality systems with their customers’ food safety and quality needs.
SQF is the only food safety program outside of Europe that is recognized by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GSFI). The program strives to improve process management and includes comprehensive and consistent training to uphold the integrity of the process. Level 3 certified companies can use the SQF trademark logo on products and marketing materials.
“Ready Pac supports and implements globally-recognized food safety standards, schemes and audit systems throughout all of our facilities to assure consistency in delivering safe quality foods,” said Brian Zomorodi, Sr. Vice President Technology & Quality. “We are confident that SQF will further improve our internal processes from product development to implementation of daily quality.”
Maintaining standardized quality and food safety systems throughout the entire supply chain is an important step in reducing redundancies and improving efficiencies. SQF begins with management commitment, and then embraces global standards for document control, defined specifications, documented product development, food safety and quality plans, verification, product traceability and requires a thorough food defense plan. All other Ready Pac facilities already have achieved SQF level 2 certification, which includes certified HACCP food safety plans benchmarked by GFSI, and will follow with Level 3 certification later this year.
COMPANY BIO: California-based Ready Pac is a premier producer of convenience fresh foods including fresh-cut produce. With processing facilities throughout the United States, Ready Pac’s award-winning salads, snacks, fresh-cut fruit and vegetables are distributed in supermarkets and restaurant chains across North America. For more information, visit www.readypac.com.
Source: Ready Pac
