What is BRC?
BRC is the common abbreviation for the BRCGS Global Standard for Food Safety, a GFSI-recognised certification standard that sets requirements for food safety, legality and product quality at manufacturers and processors supplying food to retailers and brand owners. The abbreviation comes from the British Retail Consortium, the UK trade association of supermarkets that drew up the standard in 1998. Today the owner is called BRCGS (Brand Reputation through Compliance Global Standards) and is part of the UK company LGC. For factories, BRC is more than paperwork: many requirements touch the OT environment directly, from metal detection and label checks to calibration and traceability.
🧠 How did BRC start and who manages it now?
Since the UK Food Safety Act 1990, supermarkets have had to be able to show that they exercised “due diligence” when something went wrong with their own-label products. Instead of auditing every supplier themselves, they created one shared technical standard in 1998. That approach grew into a worldwide certification scheme.
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1998 | First BRC Food Technical Standard for own-label suppliers |
| 2016 | LGC acquires BRC Global Standards from the British Retail Consortium |
| 2019 | Rebrand to BRCGS (Brand Reputation through Compliance) |
| 1 August 2022 | Publication of Food Safety Issue 9 |
| 1 February 2023 | Audits against Issue 9 become mandatory |
| 2026 | Consultation and technical working group for Issue 10; Issue 9 remains the auditable version |
BRCGS now manages a family of standards, including ones for packaging materials, storage and distribution, agents and brokers, consumer products, retail, gluten-free and plant-based products. According to BRCGS itself, there are more than 40,000 certificated sites in around 140 countries across all these standards. Food Safety is the largest and is recognised by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI).
🎯 What is the purpose of BRC?
- Protecting consumers - demonstrating that food is safe, legal and of consistent quality
- Safeguarding brand trust - retailers and brand owners cover their liability with one recognised certificate
- Reducing audits - one certificate replaces dozens of separate customer audits
- Providing structure - a fixed framework for risk analysis, HACCP, hygiene and traceability
- Continuous improvement - through internal audits, corrective actions and a demonstrable food safety culture
BRC is about product safety for the consumer. Machine and process safety for employees falls under Safety and its own legislation, although the two often overlap on the factory floor.
🧱 What does BRCGS Food Safety Issue 9 contain?
Issue 9 is divided into nine sections. Each requirement has a “statement of intent” and detailed clauses.
| No. | Section | Core |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Senior management commitment | Management engagement, food safety culture, management review |
| 2 | Food safety plan - HACCP | Hazard analysis and critical control points (CCPs) in line with Codex |
| 3 | Food safety and quality management system | Document control, internal audits, suppliers, complaints, traceability, recalls |
| 4 | Site standards | Buildings, zoning, maintenance, cleaning, pest control, foreign bodies, security |
| 5 | Product control | Product development, labelling, allergens, food fraud, product testing |
| 6 | Process control | Control of operations, label and pack control, quantity control, calibration |
| 7 | Personnel | Training, personal hygiene, medical screening, protective clothing |
| 8 | Production risk zones | Extra requirements for high-risk, high-care and ambient high-care zones |
| 9 | Traded products | Requirements for products the site buys and resells without processing |
🔑 Which requirements are fundamental?
Twelve requirements are classed as fundamental requirements. A major or critical non-conformity against the intent of such a requirement means that no certificate is issued:
- 1.1 Senior management commitment and continual improvement
- 2 The HACCP-based food safety plan
- 3.4 Internal audits
- 3.5.1 Management of suppliers of raw materials and packaging
- 3.7 Corrective and preventive actions
- 3.9 Traceability
- 4.3 Layout, product flow and segregation
- 4.11 Housekeeping and hygiene
- 5.3 Management of allergens
- 6.1 Control of operations
- 6.2 Labelling and pack control
- 7.1 Training
The traceability test must be carried out at least once a year and deliver full forward and backward traceability within four hours, including a mass balance.
📊 How does the BRCGS audit and grading work?
An accredited certification body audits the site, typically over two to three days. Findings are classified as minor, major or critical. Their number and severity determine the grade:
| Grade | Non-conformities | Next audit |
|---|---|---|
| AA | Up to 5 minors | After 12 months |
| A | 6 to 10 minors | After 12 months |
| B | 11 to 16 minors, or 1 major and up to 10 minors | After 12 months |
| C | 17 to 24 minors, or 1 major and 11 to 16 minors, or 2 majors and up to 10 minors | After 6 months |
| D | 25 to 30 minors, or 1 major and 17 to 24 minors, or 2 majors and 11 to 16 minors | After 6 months, plus a revisit within 28 days |
| No certificate | Any critical, 31 or more minors, 1 major with 25 or more minors, 2 majors with 17 or more minors, 3 or more majors, or a major against a fundamental requirement | Full re-audit |
After an unannounced audit the grade carries a plus sign, such as AA+. Every certificated site must have at least one in three audits carried out unannounced. Non-conformities must be closed within 28 calendar days with evidence and a root cause analysis; with grade D this is done through a revisit to the site. A newly certificated site starts with an announced audit and must have its first unannounced audit within two years.
🏭 Who is BRC certification for?
| Sector | Matching BRCGS standard |
|---|---|
| Food manufacturers and processors | Food Safety |
| Packaging manufacturers | Packaging Materials |
| Storage and logistics | Storage and Distribution |
| Traders and importers without their own production | Agents and Brokers |
| Non-food (cosmetics, household products) | Consumer Products |
| Shops and retail chains | Retail |
Food Safety is aimed at sites where food is handled, processed or packed, from dairy and meat to bakery, beverages and ready meals. For exporters to UK retailers, BRCGS is often the de facto entry requirement.
🔧 What role does OT play in BRCGS compliance?
An auditor does not look at networks, but does look for evidence that processes are under control. That evidence increasingly comes from PLCs, SCADA, MES and a historian.
| BRCGS requirement | OT application in the factory |
|---|---|
| 2 HACCP / 6.1 control of operations | Online monitoring of CCPs such as pasteurisation temperature, with alarms and records |
| 3.9 traceability | Batch records in MES, GS1 codes and barcodes on raw materials and finished product |
| 4.7 maintenance | Planned maintenance and hygiene clearance through a CMMS |
| 4.10 foreign-body detection | Metal detectors and X-ray systems with automatic rejection and fail-safe tests |
| 4.11 cleaning | Validated Clean-In-Place cycles with logged temperature, concentration and time |
| 6.2 label control | Vision systems that check label, allergens and date code on the line |
| 6.4 calibration | Calibration of sensors and scales against traceable standards |
Electronic records must be reliable. That is why you need data integrity, audit trails and controlled changes through change management. Requirement 4.2 also covers site security and food defence against deliberate contamination, where insider threats count too.
🧭 How do you prepare for BRCGS certification?
- Buy the standard and the interpretation guideline - read Issue 9 and its supporting guidance in full
- Carry out a gap analysis - compare your current quality management system and HACCP plan with all nine sections
- Secure the fundamental requirements first - traceability, allergens, label control and training carry the most weight
- Involve engineering and OT - list which CCPs are monitored automatically and how that data is retained
- Test traceability and recall - practise until you can deliver a full mass balance within four hours
- Run internal audits - with at least a planned cycle covering all requirements and a management review
- Choose a certification body - and agree whether you start with an announced audit
In the Netherlands, the NVWA (Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority) supervises the legal requirements. Certification does not replace that obligation, but it does align with it: the General Food Law Regulation (EC) 178/2002 requires traceability one step forward and one step back, and Regulation (EU) 2021/382 makes food safety culture mandatory. Large food manufacturers may also fall under NIS2 and the Dutch Cybersecurity Act (Cyberbeveiligingswet), in force since 15 August 2026. In that case, the security of the OT systems behind your BRCGS evidence also becomes part of a legal duty of care.
🔄 How does BRC compare with other standards?
| Standard | Type | Characteristic |
|---|---|---|
| BRCGS Food Safety | GFSI-recognised scheme | Detailed, prescriptive requirements; grades AA to D |
| FSSC 22000 | GFSI-recognised scheme | ISO 22000 plus ISO/TS 22002 programmes and additional FSSC requirements |
| IFS Food | GFSI-recognised scheme | Originated in German and French retail; percentage score with KO requirements |
| ISO 22000 | ISO management system standard | More flexible framework, not GFSI-recognised on its own |
| ISO 9001 | Quality management | No food safety requirements, often combined |
| GMP | Good manufacturing practice | Prerequisites that return in every scheme |
Retailers usually accept any GFSI-recognised scheme. Which one you choose depends mainly on your customers and export markets.
❓ Frequently asked questions
What does BRC stand for?
BRC stands for British Retail Consortium, the UK trade association of supermarkets that drew up the food safety standard in 1998. The standard is now called BRCGS Food Safety and has been owned by LGC since 2016. In practice, many people use BRC and BRCGS interchangeably.
Is BRC certification a legal requirement?
BRC certification is not a legal requirement; it is a voluntary, private standard. However, many retailers and brand owners require a GFSI-recognised certificate such as BRCGS from their suppliers. Legal requirements such as HACCP and traceability always apply regardless.
How long is a BRCGS certificate valid?
A BRCGS Food Safety certificate is normally re-audited every 12 months. With grade C or D, the re-audit follows after only 6 months. At least one in three audits must be unannounced.
What is the difference between BRC and IFS?
BRC and IFS Food are both GFSI-recognised food safety schemes covering similar topics. BRCGS comes from UK retail and uses grades from AA to D, while IFS comes from German and French retail and uses a percentage score with knock-out requirements. The choice usually depends on which retailers your customers are.
Which version of BRC is current?
BRCGS Food Safety Issue 9 was published on 1 August 2022 and has applied to audits since 1 February 2023. In 2026, BRCGS started developing Issue 10 through a consultation and a technical working group. Until Issue 10 is published and its transition period ends, Issue 9 remains the auditable version.
What does BRC have to do with OT?
BRC requires evidence that critical processes, labels and foreign-body detection are demonstrably under control. That evidence often comes from PLCs, SCADA, MES and vision systems in the factory. That is why data integrity, calibration and controlled changes to OT systems belong in good BRC preparation.
📌 In summary
BRC (BRCGS Food Safety) is a globally recognised, GFSI-benchmarked standard for food safety and quality, and for many suppliers the entry ticket to retail. Issue 9 has nine sections and twelve fundamental requirements, with grades from AA to D. If you record process data from PLC, SCADA and MES reliably, you already hold most of the evidence for traceability, CCP monitoring and label control.