Olam Ghana’s biscuit factory gets first FSSC Certification in West Africa
Olam Ghana’s Nutrifoods Biscuit factory became the first biscuit manufacturing facility in West Africa to earn international recognition for compliance in food safety standards after it was awarded Food Safety System Certification Scheme (FSSC) certification along with the company’s tomato paste plant in Tema.
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The two processing facilities have been accorded FSSC 22000 accreditation which acknowledges that the facilities have respectively focused their food safety efforts on scientific and technical initiatives, thereby providing confidence to stakeholders and regulatory bodies of their ability to identify and control food safety hazards.
Olam’s Nutrifoods Ghana Limited is the producer of three brands of biscuits – the Royal King Cracker, the Royal Milky Magic and the Perk Milk Shortcake and also produces Tasty-Tom a household tomato-mix and pasta.
The FSSC 22000 certification is a global food safety initiative (GFSI) benchmark which enjoys international recognition and worldwide credibility and offers a common language and communication for food safety across the supply chain.
Nutrifoods Ghana Limited is widely acknowledged as the leading biscuits producing company in Ghana as its brands are sold in over 50,000 stores across the country while its King Cracker brand is said to be the best and largest selling biscuit brand in Ghana.
“We are very proud to be the first biscuits factory in West Africa, to receive the Global FSSC certification. It is indicative of the much higher benchmarks we hold ourselves to when it comes to safety and quality of our products,” said Mr. Chitwan Singh, Business Head at Nutrifoods Biscuits.
FSSC certification is not necessarily a mandatory requirement for such plants, but Mr. Chitwan explains that in a mass production food facility where about 1,000 packs are packaged per minute, it is almost impossible to sample every unit individually for quality and it is for this reason that FSSC is relevant and significant, as it offers both management and consumers the confidence that every pack that leaves the facility is safe for consumption.
Olam Ghana Limited is a subsidiary of Olam International and has a 22-year track record in Ghana as a major supply chain manager of agric products and a leading agro-commodity and packaged foods company.
Olam is ranked among the country’s top Licensed Buying Companies (LBCs), a leading trader in Ghana’s cocoa beans into European and Asian markets and is Ghana’s biggest exporter of cashew and one of the leading importers of rice. The company became one of the country’s major flour millers when it opened a new state-of-the-art wheat flour mill at Tema in 2012.