What the PAS 220 Standard Is

What the PAS 220 Standard Is

PAS 220 was published on 25 October 2008, developed by Nestle, Unilever, Danone, and Kraft (known as G4) together with several certification bodies in the working group. PAS 220 was developed to cover requirements that were seen as not fully addressed in the ISO 22000 food safety management system standard. It was put together by major global food producers in partnership with the Confederation of Food and Drink Industries (CIAA). In 2008 the PAS 220 (Publicly Available Specification) was published, detailing prerequisite programmes and applicable across operations. It was financed by CIAA.

PAS 220 is a guidance document rather than an auditable standard on its own, and it cannot be certified independently. When audited together with ISO 22000, the combination is known as FSSC (Food Safety System Certification). PAS 220 is designed to run together with the internationally recognised ISO 22000. ISO 22000 sets food safety requirements specific to operations in the food chain. PAS 220 supports ISO 22000 by detailing prerequisite programmes. The standard was developed by leading food-sector firms as a guide for applying ISO 22000 prerequisite programmes consistently across operations, and it addresses legal compliance monitoring, customer-requirement handling, and quality personnel management.