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Most Apt Answers For Expected ISO 22000 Interview Questions

The sprawling food industry is constantly flourishing. It needs to be under the radar of safety regulations laid down by ISO 22000 standard. This is one such area where quality compromise not just knocks down a business's reputation or sales. It also puts human and animal lives at stake. To survive the competition and stay amidst the front-row brands, hiring food safety professionals has become a necessity. In this context, the ones who are considered the best certainly must have ISO 22000 Foundation Certification. Certified individuals are under the immediate attention of employers across the world.

Food manufacturers, sellers, and even supply chain vendors need ISO certification to prove their genuineness. Certified professionals are best suited to assist such enterprises in aligning with the ISO criteria for managing food safety. An in-depth knowledge of ISO 22000 standards and practices for meeting them is analyzed by the recruiter. Therefore, aspirants mustn’t falter while answering the hirer’s questions during an interview. Listed below are questions covering various aspects of food safety for a beforehand practice of how to approach them in respective ways.

ISO 22000 is an international standard for food safety management. It was revised to face and handle the newer kinds of safety challenges in food businesses. This revision aims to align an organization’s strategies with its FSMS.

With time, supply chains in all industries have become globalized. Supply networks are growing in size and so are their complexities. This has led to uncertainty in the sources, quality, and delivery of these supply materials. It is a matter of concern especially, in the food industry where the slightest compromise in quality can cause havoc.

Wine adulteration with ethylene glycol derivatives and mad cow disease are prominent among the food crises before FSMS became stringent. The credit goes to the ISO principles that cover every aspect of food hygiene and oblige organizations to practice the same.

ISO 22000 Certification possesses a structure that easily aligns with that of other ISO standards for different management systems. These are namely, ISO 14001, 45001, and 9001. Organizations complying with the rules of any of these standards can also become ISO 22000-certified and fulfill its criteria simultaneously.

There hasn’t been any replacement but the addition of principles in the ISO 22000:2018. These are :
  • Relationship management
  • Decision-making based on evidence
  • Consumer focus
  • Leadership
  • Employee involvement
  • Improved process approach

The components of the original edition of ISO 22000 are namely, prerequisite programs, HACCP principles, system management, and interactive communication. It was based on the PDCA cycle to cover the operational procedures of FSMS.

ISO 22000 has a vast scope of its application. It strives at improving FSMS in an enterprise of any size and at any stage of the food chain. The documentation of this benchmark states the practices that organizations must observe to achieve and maintain their certification.

ISO 22000 is applicable to organizations related to producing animal and human food packaging materials. The shelf-life of a food product depends a lot on the quality of its storage and packaging is a part of it.

Manufacturers can’t do away with preservatives and flavors while processing their food products. So, they must ensure that none of these additives are harsh on human health. It is a matter of serious concern since processed food is consumed on a large scale in modern times.

The principles laid down by ISO 22000 Certification automatically enforces the best food safety practices in an organization. This keeps all the possible risks of food safety hazards at bay thereby, enhancing risk management efficiency.

A lot of issues arise due to the lack of proper communication between a food organization and its supply chain vendors. ISO 22000 standard makes interactive communication mandatory for certified food businesses. This allows enterprises to keep track of the quality and delivery time of materials supplied to them.

Updating, verification, and validation are the 3 main objectives of ISO 22000. All three demand that an organization must furnish verified and warranteed food safety documents. This facilitates rated effectiveness, targeted control, and planned performance of the organization’s FSMS.

ISO 22000 instructs certain actions regarding the working environment and infrastructure of a food business. Preventive programs are the requirements to fulfill the ISO criteria for safe food production and processing.

A section of ISO 22000 consists of regulations regarding the type and time of communication within and outside the organization. Every department must be clearly aware of the safety practices initiated or eliminated. Besides, they need to communicate the same to the concerned suppliers of raw materials.

CCP stands for ‘Critical Control Points’. HACCP principles include the identification and supervision of CCPs. The other principles are documentation, risk analysis, and defining the corrective measures.

Catering companies, restaurant chains, and other communal feeding enterprises highly benefit from ISO 22000. Compliance with the ISO standards makes these businesses globally accepted in terms of food safety.

Owning ISO 22000 Foundation Certification is an advantage for professionals pursuing a career in food safety as it makes them extremely knowledgeable. Hiring professionals with such updated knowledge and skills of handling FSMS will benefit orgganizations in the food industry. Additionally, such professionals can assist businesses in getting ISO certified.

A food safety action plan must contain details on the following:
  • Actions to be taken
  • Resources required for them
  • Responsibility allotment
  • Timeline for completion
  • Results evaluation method

ISO 22000 Certification calls for the enforcement of FSMS requirements in a SMART way. S stands for the term specific which means that every practice should be stated precisely. M denotes that each process should be measurable for easy monitoring of its progress. A stands for achievable objectives of these practices. R signifies that the goals must be realistic for the food business. T symbolizes the completion date for these tasks.

Yes, it has. A traceability system allows the organization to ensure that its FSMS is ready to face challenges and resolve them efficiently. ISO 2018 version makes it mandatory for food safety management to retain documentation of test results. At least for the duration mentioned as the shelf-life of the concerned product.

HACCP principles include hazard analysis, CCP identification, establishing critical limits, monitoring procedures, corrective actions, verification procedures, and record-keeping and documentation.

Yes, ISO 22000 Foundation professionals should maintain all records of the HACCP plan, including hazard analysis, critical control points, monitoring results, corrective actions, and verification activities.

Critical limits are the maximum and minimum values that must be controlled at a CCP to prevent, eliminate, or reduce the occurrence of a food safety hazard to an acceptable level. These limitations aid in ensuring the food product's safety for consumption.

  • Water activity (Aw)
  • pH
  • Salt content
  • Mycotoxin levels
  • Absence of allergens

The three levels of corrective action are:
  • Immediate action to recover process control.
  • Short-term action to identify the impacted product, control it, and address it.
  • Long-term action to investigate the cause and prevent it from reoccur.

  • Scope
  • Normative references
  • Terms and definitions
  • Context of the organization
  • Leadership
  • Planning
  • Support
  • Operation
  • Performance evaluation
  • Improvement

ISO 22000 external audits are necessary for organizations seeking ISO 22000 certification. A third-party certification certification body or authority conducts these audits to evaluate an organization's ISO 22000 compliance.

An ISO 22000 internal audit is conducted by the Lead Auditor to evaluate an organization's food safety management system to assess its compliance with ISO 22000 standards.

  • Biological Hazards
  • Chemical Hazards
  • Physical Hazards

The stakeholders in HACCP include Food Producers and Processors, Regulatory Agencies, Consumers, Retailers and Distributors, and Suppliers.

Some examples of Biological Hazards in HACCP include:
  • Bacteria
  • Viruses
  • Parasites
  • Fungi

Details of the hazard analysis, CCP determination, training records, corrective action procedures, glass breakage procedures, standard operating procedures, cleaning schedules, pest control reports, and supplier documentation.

The four pillars of ISO 22000 are interactive communication; system management; prerequisite programmes; and the principles of the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP).

Customer focus, Leadership, Engagement of people, Process approach, Improvement, Evidence-based decision-making, and Relationship management are some common principles that come under the ISO 22000 standard.

ISO 22000 has linkages to various other international standards and guidelines. This can help organizations meet other standards and guidelines related to food safety and quality.

PDCA stands for Plan-Do-Check-Act. PDCA cycle is a fundamental concept in quality management. it is a systematic and iterative four-step management method used for continuous improvement in various processes and systems.

ISO 22000 audit report includes the requirements for the areas that need improvement. it also specifies the degree to which an organizational FSMS complies with ISO 22000 requirements for future reference.

Food safety audit tools are used to assess and evaluate food safety practices within an organization. It includes copies of the ISO 22000 documentation, pre-audit questionnaires, manuals, protocols, and checklists.

ISO 22000 remote audit involves using electronic communication and technology to assess an organization's food safety management system and compliance with ISO 22000 standards without the need for physical presence.

An organization's commitment to food safety is outlined in its food safety policy, which also acts as a framework for accomplishing food safety goals. A food safety policy must be established by organizations in accordance with the ISO 22000 standard as a fundamental part of their food safety management system.