BSI introduces kitemark to address food fraud
BSI is responding to the food industry’s increasing levels of food fraud with the launch of a BSI Kitemark for Food Assurance.
The business improvement company said the kitemark’s introduction will independently verify food product label claims to rebuild years of eroded consumer confidence.
The new BSI Kitemark for Food Assurance enables brands, manufacturers, producers and suppliers to fulfil and communicate their commitment and customer promise whether it relates to authenticity, provenance, purity, socially responsible or environmentally sustainable agri-food production and supply.
“Today, people want to understand the important details about the food they eat,” explained Howard Kerr, chief executive at BSI. “By extending the power of the Kitemark into areas like food authenticity and provenance, BSI can serve that need. After all, customers deserve food that’s safe, sustainable and socially responsible.”
The BSI Kitemark for Food Assurance focuses upon the supply chain to verify the customer promise; for scientifically measurable claims like composition or purity, statistically valid sampling and testing controls embedded within the chain confirms product integrity; additionally, site inspections validate 30 data points from legal status, geo-location, number of personnel to production capacity and export countries to create a unique living BSI VerifEye client profile.
An organisation’s VerifEye profile is available online through the BSI VerifEye Directory with essential consumer information consumer-readable by QR code on the product’s packaging. The directory enables consumers to actively check verified organisations and shop with confidence.
If an ingredient or product promise can be tested, measured and/or verified, a BSI Kitemark Food Assurance programme can be developed to verify it. As part of BSI’s growing partnership with Fera, the United Kingdom’s National Reference Laboratory, their knowledge and expertise in food authenticity is essential, establishing rigorous testing protocols to support the programme.
The Kitemark Food Assurance Programme supports a broad range of products including:
- Authenticity
Is this Scottish Heather Honey, from Scotland, from heather and is it honey?
- Purity
Does this product contain the right amount of CBD oil with less than 0.01% THC?
- Provenance
Was this sparkling wine produced in the Champagne region in the northeast of France?
- Welfare and nutrition
Is this beef produced from herds without hormones and are only grass fed?