Preparing for a Safe Quality Food (SQF) audit may seem daunting. An SQF Audit is a comprehensive review of the food safety management system at your facility. It includes an assessment of how your facility implements the requirements of the SQF Code, as well as how it complies with related regulations and standards.
But with the proper steps, your team can confidently meet certification requirements.
Let’s go step-by-step and answer all questions related to an SQF audit.
What Is an SQF Audit?
An SQF audit is a third-party inspection of your food safety and quality system. It measures how well your facility meets the SQF Program requirements. This program is globally recognized and aligned with the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI).
Audits focus on food handling procedures, risk mitigation, sanitation practices, documentation accuracy, and employee training. The goal is to demonstrate that your operations consistently produce safe, high-quality food. Companies that pass an SQF audit gain customer trust, minimize regulatory pressure, and often reduce the number of individual client audits.
What Are the 8 Steps to Prepare for an SQF Audit?
Whether aiming for your first certification or maintaining a current one, following structured steps will help you succeed.
Step 1: Understand the SQF Program
The SQF Program offers different certification levels, tailored to business type and customer expectations. Choose the level that best fits your operation.
- Level 1: Food Safety Fundamentals: Entry-level. Applies to low-risk operations and covers basic compliance needs.
- Level 2: HACCP-Based Food Safety Plans: Covers systematic hazard analysis and prevention. Most manufacturers pursue this level.
- Level 3: Comprehensive Food Safety and Quality Management: Level 2 requirements plus documented quality systems.
Knowing your desired level early lets you focus your resources effectively. Most companies pursue Level 2 or 3 to meet broader market demands.
Step 2: Designate an SQF Practitioner
A trained SQF Practitioner must lead your SQF system. This person will become your internal expert on the SQF Code. They are responsible for implementation, monitoring, and documentation.
An SQF Practitioner must have HACCP training and a working knowledge of the applicable SQF Code. They also need to understand food regulations relevant to your business sector. Ideally, this role should be filled by someone who interacts daily with both documents and trained SQF Practitioners, who must lead your SQF system audits, manage corrective actions, and keep the program up to date.
Step 3: Register Your Site
Before scheduling an audit, register your facility in the SQF Assessment Database. This official platform manages your certification status and connects you to certification bodies. Registration is mandatory for all businesses seeking certification.
It’s a simple but essential step that opens the door to working with auditors. Keep your registration information current to avoid administrative delays.
Step 4: Understand the SQF Code and Define Scope
Next, obtain the most current version of the SQF Code that applies to your industry. Review it carefully and determine which sections apply to your operation. This will define your scope of certification.
Your scope outlines what products, processes, or parts of your facility the audit will evaluate. Be specific. For instance, if you produce frozen baked goods and fresh deli items, both should be listed clearly.
Understanding your scope helps you apply the correct code modules and ensures your facility meets relevant standards without unnecessary work.
Step 5: Build Your Food Safety System
Your SQF system must be well-documented and tailored to your facility’s operations. Start with a thorough food safety plan based on HACCP principles. This plan should identify hazards, set critical control points, and define preventive actions.
Then, expand your documentation. Include:
- Sanitation standard operating procedures (SSOPs)
- Equipment calibration and maintenance logs
- Employee hygiene policies
- Supplier approval and verification protocols
- Product traceability systems
- Complaint and recall procedure for your facility’s operations and life practices on the floor. Auditors will walk your site and expect consistency between written protocols and observed behaviors.
Step 6: Train and Implement
Now that your system is documented, it’s time to put it into practice. Train all team members on their roles within the SQF system. Training should be hands-on, relevant, and consistent across departments.
Everyone must understand the importance of compliance. Reinforce food safety culture through active involvement, routine discussions, and visible leadership. The Practitioner should verify that training is complete and understood by all staff.
Implementation isn’t a one-time event. Systems must run continuously, not just in the lead-up to the audit.
Step 7: Perform a Gap Analysis
Before booking your audit, assess how well your current systems align with the SQF Code. Conduct a gap analysis or internal audit to uncover weaknesses. This proactive review helps you fix issues before an auditor finds them.
Use your SQF Practitioner to lead this process or hire a third-party SQF consultant. Many facilities also perform a mock audit to simulate actual audit conditions. Mock audits build confidence, improve readiness, and give your staff experience responding to questions. Learn more about developing SQF compliant internal audit program to strengthen your audit readiness.
Corrective actions must follow any findings. Document changes clearly and revisit each area to confirm resolution.
Step 8: Choose a Certification Body and Schedule the Audit
Select a licensed certification body once your systems are in place and gaps are closed. Contact them to schedule your official SQF audit. Be ready to provide your certification scope, supporting documents, and a preferred audit window.
The certification body will guide you through the process. The audit itself has two parts:
- Document Review: The auditor checks your written food safety system.
- On-Site Evaluation: The auditor tours your facility, speaks with staff, and, after observing operations, selects a licensed certification body.
Afterward, you’ll receive non-conformities. Fix any outstanding issues to receive your final certification.
The Auditor’s Role and What They Check
An SQF audit is performed by a third-party auditor trained and licensed by the SQF Institute. They evaluate your facility based on your selected scope: food processing, packaging, storage, or distribution. The audit involves:
- Examining written programs and food safety documentation
- Observing real-time operations
- Interviewing staff about procedures and compliance
- Reviewing records for consistency with SQF Code expectations
Keeping Your SQF System Active
Passing the audit is just the beginning. You must maintain your food safety system throughout the year.
Perform regular internal audits to keep systems strong and identify new risks—update documentation when procedures change. Track employee training and refresh it periodically. Management should remain involved and informed about audit readiness at all times. See how to create an effective SQF management review process in our guide.
Consistency shows auditors and your customers that your commitment to food safety is not temporary.
The Role of FoodReady in SQF Preparation
FoodReady offers software, templates, and consulting to make this process easier. Whether building a HACCP plan, performing a mock audit, or training staff, our tools help you stay organized and compliant.
Our platform centralizes your documents, audit tasks, and updates. You can access expert guidance without manually managing everything.
In addition to software tools, FoodReady offers Certified SQF Consultants who conduct gap assessments, perform mock audits, and help draft your HACCP plans. This expert support can significantly improve audit outcomes and reduce preparation time, especially for new applicants or facilities with complex operations.
Bonus Tips to Strengthen Your Audit Readiness
Here are several best practices to enhance your success:
- Label all documents with revision dates and version numbers.
- Keep your records up to date and organized by category.
- Post key procedures in work areas for quick reference.
- Review supplier documents regularly and flag any outdated certifications.
- Train staff to confidently answer auditor questions.
The access can significantly affect the manual management of everything.
Get SQF Audit-Ready With Confidence
Preparing for an SQF audit doesn’t have to be overwhelming. FoodReady’s templates, mock audits, and expert consultants make the process smoother from start to certification.
Why SQF Certification Matters?
SQF certification proves your business prioritizes food safety and quality. It opens doors to larger retailers, strengthens brand trust, and standardizes processes throughout your operation.
More than just a checkbox, the SQF Program encourages ongoing improvement. By following each step of this guide, your team will build a safer, more efficient workplace and become audit-ready year-round.
Why is SQF Certification Considered the Gold Standard?
SQF certification is often called the “gold standard” in food safety because of its alignment with GFSI and its rigorous scope. Compared to GMP audits, SQF requires deeper system integration, extensive documentation, and proof of active risk control. For businesses hoping to enter major retailers like Walmart, Whole Foods, Kroger, or Publix, SQF certification is not just beneficial; it’s often mandatory.
Summarized SQF Audit Checklist for Food Manufacturing
This is a short summary of the SQF Edition 9 checklist. You really need to study the original SQF Checklist carefully for full understanding.
There are 11 SQF checklists in all, in this article we are going to summarize the checklist for food manufacturing.
This is a good outline of the SQF checklist for food manufacturing, but not all details of the checklist are included in the following list.
- You must have a prepared and implemented policy statement that outlines your food safety culture, commitment to quality food production, and adherence to regulatory requirements for safe food. This must be signed by senior site managers and displayed in the facility in appropriate languages so all employees can understand the policy statement.
- Your SQF system must be reviewed annually.
- You must have a complaint management system.
- You must have a working and accurate document control and record keeping management system.
- You must keep extensive and accurate product formulation and realization (product creation) documentation and records. Every change in the product must be recorded and documented.
- You must have thorough documentation of specifications of raw ingredients, packaging, and finished product, these all must be validated and verified to be free of toxins, contaminants, chemicals, physical hazards and any adulterants that would harm consumers. Allergens must be listed clearly on labeling and controlled in the facility as to not cross-contaminate any products deemed free-of-said allergens.
- You must have an approved supplier program in place.
- Your product must comply with food safety legislation in place in the country of the product’s creation and also in any country(s) where the product is sold.
- You must have Good Manufacturing Practices in place.
- You must effectively implement and maintain a Food Safety Plan in accordance with the Codex Alimentarius Commission HACCP guidelines.
- Note; this is a very important and detailed part of the audit checklist and where most manufacturers need guidance. FoodReady has SQF audit help for you with our software and fractional QA Managers. Check out our services.
- You should document the methods, responsibility, and criteria of foods and processes you inspect, analyze, and sample. This applies to “works in progress” as well as finished products. Specific guidelines are detailed in the SQF checklist. Environmental monitoring is part of this requirement.
- Non-conforming materials and products must be identified, documented, quarantined, handled and/or disposed of in a safe manner. Records of these actions must be maintained.
- Product rework, shall be overseen by qualified staff and documented, clearly identified and traceable, reprocessed in accordance with your food safety plan, inspected and analyzed before release, and shall not affect the safety of the product. Records of any rework need to be maintained.
- Product release responsibilities by a responsible staff member and methods of release need to be documented and implemented after inspection and verification of all food safety controls. This includes proper product labeling.
- A risk-based environmental monitoring program for SQF compliance shall be in place for all food manufacturing processes and immediate surrounding areas, which impact manufacturing processes. An environmental sampling and testing schedule and should test for all pathogens that are risk factors for your industry. All details of the sampling and testing should be recorded and the documents maintained.
- You must validate for the effectiveness of your SQF program. Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) shall be followed, critical food safety limits reviewed annually, and all changes assessed to ensure effectiveness. Everything must be recorded and documents maintained.
- You must record and document all procedures and activities by qualified staff related to verifying Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), Critical Control Points (CCPs), and the legality regarding these practices.
- The methods, responsibility, and outlining how corrective and preventive actions are determined, implemented and verified shall be recorded and documents maintained.
- Internal audits and inspections to verify the effectiveness of your SQF code should be regularly performed with trained SQF staff, all findings and processes should be recorded and documents maintained.
- Product identification, basically every process, ingredient, work-in-progress, finished product, label, product in storage, batches, lots, etc., shall be clearly identified. Labels for the consumer shall have all information regarding ingredients, allergens, etc. Records shall be documented and maintained.
- Product should be traceable at least one step forward to the consumer and back to the supplier. Records regarding product traceability shall be maintained.
- The responsibility and methods used to withdraw or recall products shall be documented and implemented. Recall management should be tested and verified annually. (mock recall) All records regarding product recall measures shall be documented and maintained. You must notify SQF of any food safety event that requires the public to be notified.
- A crisis management plan and trained staff should be in place. The crisis management plan should be verified annually and all records pertaining to crisis management should be maintained.
- You need to have a food threat assessment performed. You must create a food defense plan based on your food threat assessment. Staff is trained to carry out the food defense plan, it should be reviewed and tested annually and all documents maintained.
- A food fraud assessment and mitigation plan shall be tested annually and all documents maintained.
- An allergen mitigation program needs to be in place, documented and records maintained for traceability. Allergens shall be stored, machinery and surfaces shall be cleaned, maintained and used in such a way as to not contaminate areas and products that do not contain these specific allergens. Labeling needs to be accurate and complete.
- There needs to be appropriate SQF training for staff in order for the SQF code to properly be carried out.
- An SQF training program with appropriate resources needs to be in place for regular training of staff for SQF. Training records need to be maintained.
So that is the condensed version of the SQF checklist! It’s a lot! That’s why companies use the FoodReady Enterprise Solution to help them prepare for their SQF audit.
FAQs
A gap analysis, also referred to as a pre-assessment, is an essential step in preparing for an SQF audit. It involves a detailed review of your current food safety management system to identify areas that do not comply with the SQF standards. This analysis helps in pinpointing specific areas that need improvement or development to meet SQF requirements.
The SQF Food Safety Code focuses on the safety aspects of food production, processing, and handling, ensuring that food products do not pose a risk to consumers. The SQF Quality Code, on the other hand, goes beyond safety to include criteria for product quality. Companies can choose to certify under one or both codes, depending on their objectives and customer requirements.
Preparation for the SQF audit can take anywhere from 4-6-9 months depending on the size and scope of your facility and process, the number of changes and improvements that need to be made, and the amount of time your SQF practitioner can work on preparation per day. Having food safety software and SQF guidance from FoodReady can help lessen the amount of prep time for the audit.
Preparing staff for an SQF audit involves comprehensive training on the SQF Code and relevant food safety practices, ensuring they understand their roles and responsibilities within the food safety management system. Regular training sessions, mock audits, and encouraging a culture of food safety can help ensure staff are well-prepared and confident during the audit process. It’s also important to ensure that all employees are aware of and can access the company’s food safety policies and procedures.
SQF certification requires an annual audit to maintain the certification status. The certification body conducts these audits to ensure continued compliance with the SQF Code. Some aspects of the audit, such as surveillance audits, may occur more frequently, depending on the certification body’s requirements and the company’s performance.
Common pitfalls include inadequate preparation and documentation, lack of employee training, failure to update the HACCP plan and other food safety documents regularly, and not conducting internal audits or gap analyses to identify and address potential non-compliances before the official audit. Ensuring thorough preparation, continuous improvement, and engagement of all staff in food safety practices are key to aiding these pitfalls.
Yes. SQF audits are more comprehensive than GMP audits and are recognized as a higher-tier certification aligned with GFSI.
If you fail your SQF Audit, you will receive a report detailing the non-conformances found. You will then have a specified timeframe to address these issues and undergo a follow-up audit. The ability to address the non-conformances effectively is crucial to achieving certification.
No, but SQF software will help you organize documentation, track compliance, and streamline team communication.
Many businesses find that working with a consultant accelerates readiness and reduces guesswork.
The cost of an SQF Audit varies based on the scope of the audit, the size of the facility, and the level of certification being pursued. Costs can include fees for the auditor, preparation work, possible changes to processes or facilities to meet SQF standards, and the certification fee. It’s advisable to get a quote from a certified SQF auditor or consulting firm for a more accurate estimate.
Maintaining SQF certification requires ongoing commitment to the SQF Code’s principles, including regular training of staff, continuous improvement of food safety and quality systems, timely updates to documentation, and addressing any non-compliances identified during internal or external audits. Companies should also stay informed about changes in SQF standards and related food safety regulations to ensure continuous compliance.
Your certification scope should reflect all applicable product categories (e.g., frozen baked goods and deli items). Your site may be audited against multiple modules.
