2

Jun

ISO Certification : Hoodwinking The Poor Consumer

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As I travel India by air, I am served a variety of snacks and beverages.

Many times, I find that they have a claim on the label like ‘ISO 9001 certified company’ or ‘ISO 22000 certified company’ or ‘HACCP certified company’.

Many of you may also have seen a similar statement on labels and, unless you are familiar with this field, would have felt assured that the food item you have is of good quality.

Unfortunately, this is misrepresentation by the food businesses is violation of international norms.

First thing to understand is what ISO 9001 or ISO 22000 or HACCP are.

ISO 9001 is a globally popular standard published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) based in Geneva, in which Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) from India is a member. The standard prescribes requirements for implementing what is called a ‘quality management system’ or QMS within an organization. As the expression aptly indicates, it means a system for managing quality within the organization – be it product or service. While you should certainly expect that such a certified organization should deliver a good quality product, this certification does NOT certify product quality. For example, when you see an ISI mark on an electric iron or mixer, it indicates the product is certified by an independent body, in this case BIS.

Similarly, ISO 22000 is about food safety management system – and as it implies, the food business has implemented a system to manage food safety. Not certifying product quality or safety.

 

Column at a Glance
A person with a beard AI-generated content may be incorrect.The article discusses the misleading use of certifications like ISO 9001, ISO 22000, and HACCP on food products in India. While these certifications indicate that a company has implemented quality or food safety management systems, they do not guarantee the quality or safety of the products themselves. This misrepresentation violates international norms, which state that such claims should not appear on product labels. Instead, they can only be on packaging that is not integral to the product. Consumers are advised to report any misleading claims to manufacturers, certification bodies, or regulatory authorities like the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA). The article emphasizes the importance of consumer vigilance in combating this common practice.
 

HACCP means hazard analysis critical control point – a methodology to manage food safety risks within the production unit. Again, a system or process of some kind. Not certifying exactly the product quality or safety

Recognizing that use of any statement of such certification on product or product labelling may mislead the common man in assuming that the product itself is certified, the international norms for certification (ISO 17021-1 and read with ISO 22003 for food products) do not allow use of such a statement on the product or its labelling in case of food and in case of other products, allow use of such a statement only on packaging which is not integral to the product.

For example, if you purchase an electric iron, a statement of ISO 9001 certification can be on the box in which iron is packed and which is removed the moment you take out the iron for use, but not on the small plate which is screwed on to it and which remains with the product.

Even when statement is allowed, it should contain the name of or reference to the certification body – if it is not then there is non-compliance to international norms.

What should you do if you find that such a statement is made on the product or the packaging in non-compliance to international norms – you should complain to the manufacturer.

It is likely that the manufacturer will not respond.

There is now a global database of ISO certificates available at https://www.iafcertsearch.org/ and one can verify that the manufacturer is indeed certified given the market is full of dubious certificates too. It would also provide the name of the certification body as well as the accreditation body which has accredited the certification body. You can complain to them too.

You can escalate the complaint to the regulator which in case of food is Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) or in case of electric iron to the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) which certifies it under a regulation.

You can also file a complaint with the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) under Consumer Protection Act which has a regulation on misleading claims.

This is a very common practice in the market and raising issue against it is the only way to drive it away. As consumer you have to be persistent!!!

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