FDA Publishes User Guide for Participants in the Accredited Third-Party Certification Program

Certification bodies can conduct food safety audits and issue certifications of foreign food facilities

Published: Tuesday, January 22, 2019 - 10:02

(FDA: Silver Spring, MD) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has published an Electronic User Guide for its Accredited Third-Party Certification Program Portal.

In this voluntary program, established by the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, the agency recognizes “accreditation bodies” that may accredit third-party “certification bodies.” The certification bodies will be able to conduct food safety audits and issue certifications for food facilities, for both human and animal foods, and the foods they produce.

The user guide is designed to help entities apply for recognition as accreditation bodies through the portal. The user guide will also help recognized accreditation bodies manage their accounts, including profiles of certification bodies they have accredited, in the portal.

More information about the Accredited Third-Party Certification Program is available at FDA.gov.

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FDA

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible for protecting the public health by assuring the safety, efficacy, and security of human and veterinary drugs, biological products, medical devices, our nation’s food supply, cosmetics, and products that emit radiation. The FDA is also responsible for advancing the public health by helping to speed innovations that make medicines and foods more effective, safer, and more affordable, and helping the public get the accurate, science-based information they need to use medicines and foods to improve their health.