Food safety
GHP
Good hygiene practices
Good hygiene practices (GHPs) are the basic conditions and measures that keep food safe and suitable wherever it is handled.
The Codex Alimentarius Commission, the international food standards body, sets them out in Part one of its General Principles of Food Hygiene (CXC 1-1969). They are what is sometimes loosely called good manufacturing practice for food, and they are the foundation that any HACCP system is built on.
Who it suits
Food businesses, such as caterers, small manufacturers, storage and distribution businesses, whose customers ask for evidence of good hygiene practices, and whose hazard analysis shows that good hygiene practices alone control their hazards. Food law in many countries already requires good hygiene; this certificate is a voluntary, independent check on top of that duty and does not replace it.
What certification involves
Codex does not publish a certification standard and certifies no one. ISAO audits the food business against Part one of the Codex text, using its own documented audit criteria, and the certificate names the products, activities and site covered. A good hygiene practices certificate does not cover a HACCP system: where the hazard analysis shows that some hazards must be controlled at critical control points, the HACCP certificate, which covers both parts together, is the right one. It is a voluntary certificate: it is not a food business licence or registration, a hygiene rating or an audit for a food safety authority, and it is not valid for import or export clearance. ISAO carries out this certification itself and records every certificate it issues on the public register. It does not accredit certification bodies for it.
Key themes
- Primary production carried out so that food stays safe and suitable for its intended use
- Premises, equipment and facilities designed and kept so that they can be cleaned and do not contaminate food
- Training and competence of everyone who handles food
- Maintenance, cleaning and disinfection, and pest control
- Personal hygiene and health of food handlers
- Control of operations: time and temperature, cross-contamination, allergens, incoming materials, water, packaging and recall
- Product information for the next business in the chain and for consumers, and hygienic transport
What the certificate is not
Certificates ISAO issues for GHP carry this statement:
This is a voluntary certificate issued by International Standards Accreditation Organization (ISAO). It is not issued under accreditation and is not valid for import or export clearance or any other regulatory purpose. It is not a licence, registration certificate, approval, inspection, hygiene rating or audit by or for any food safety authority (including an FSSAI licence, registration certificate, hygiene rating or food safety audit, or a US FDA food or facility certification) and does not replace the holder's legal obligations. It certifies the hygiene system described, not the safety or quality of any product, and it does not cover a HACCP system. The Codex Alimentarius Commission does not certify, accredit or endorse ISAO, the holder or this certificate.
Edition
Good hygiene practices have no ISO edition. The reference text is Part one of the Codex General Principles of Food Hygiene (CXC 1-1969), as revised in 2022. ISAO's certificates name that revision.
Check a certificate for GHP
- Enter the certificate number or verification code at Verify a certificate, or scan the QR code on the certificate. The record shows the certificate's status today, for example valid, suspended, withdrawn or expired.
- Compare the organisation name, scope and site on the record with the copy you were given. Check the products, activities and site named in the scope.
- Check that the record names ISAO as the issuer: ISAO issues its certificates for GHP itself. Read the disclaimer on the record, which is also printed on the certificate: it says what the certificate is not, and that no authority issued or approved it.
- If the certificate is not on the register, ISAO cannot confirm it: another organisation may have issued it, or a detail may be wrong. Ask whoever gave it to you, and report a concern if something does not look right.
Related standards
This is ISAO’s own summary, not the text of the documents that define GHP.