Berlin, Germany / St. Louis, USA – February 15, 2012 – IFS Management GmbH, owner of the GFSI benchmarked IFS Food standard, IFS Logistics and other food supply chain standards, and The Packaging Association of Canada (PAC) have joined together to bring the world’s foremost packaging standard for primary and secondary packaging to the food industry.

PACsecure will now become IFS PACsecure and will be submitted for GFSI benchmarking and available around the world to ensure the safety and quality of packaging materials for the food industry.
“We are very happy to join with the Packaging Association of Canada to bring the PACsecure packaging standard to the global food industry as a new member of the IFS family of standards,” said Stephan Tromp, IFS Managing Director. “IFS brings standards to the food industry that are developed and steered by the industry for which they are applicable. In this case, the PACsecure standard was developed by some of the world’s largest packaging and food companies to bring food-safe, quality packaging materials to the food supply chain.”

IFS PACsecure was created by PAC to provide packaging manufacturers the ability to certify primary and secondary packaging materials for the food industry. Developed by a technical working group made up of some of North America’s largest global packaging and food manufacturers, the standard will be managed by a joint effort of the PAC through their technical expertise and know-how in the packaging industry, and IFS and its global network of food safety and quality standards infrastructure.
Jim Downham, CEO of The Association says, “We firmly believe that PACsecure is the world’s foremost standard for primary and secondary packaging designed for the food supply chain. Since a large proportion of the international food industry will only accept packaging that is recognized by the Paris, France-based Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI), partnering with IFS makes the most sense for global implementation.”

The IFS PACsecure standard will offer all of the benefits IFS certification provides its more than 12,000 certified IFS Food, IFS Logistics, IFS Broker, and IFS Cash & Carry users, as well as the expert industry knowledge and technical strength of the PAC membership – packaging and food manufacturers.

For more information, please contact:

IFS Management GmbH
George Gansner
Marketing & Business Development
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
314-686-4610

Packaging Association Canada
James D Downham
Director,  President & CEO
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416-646-4637

Addendum with the Benefits of IFS PACsecure include:

• GFSI benchmarking
• Strong auditor competency to ensure users of the safety and quality of products they purchase
• IFS Integrity Program – a proprietary IFS complaint management system developed as a program to ensure the integrity of IFS standards, registered certification bodies and auditors. It is applied globally through a network of IFS trained and privately employed auditors
• Technical Industry Expertise – PAC are the experts on packaging requirements for the food industry
• IFS auditXpress – the proprietary internal audit program for industry and certification body use
• Database Access – the most expansive and user-friendly database available where all IFS audit reports are stored behind a password protected firewall for the integrity of IFS certified companies. The IFS Data Portal provides special reporting functionality to help retailers and manufacturers easily manage their suppliers
• Steering of the Standard – PAC’s members are leaders in packaging for the food industry. They developed the standard and will continue to provide the direction necessary to meet the foremost safety and quality needs of packaging in the global food industry
• Up to 12-months to make corrective actions on deviations found in the IFS audit – providing a real system for continuous improvement, as well as allowing audited companies the ability to manage corrective actions in a way that meets their business needs
• Training – Industry and Auditor training, developed by the industry experts at PAC, will be offered through PAC to enhance the implementation process for packaging producers
• Cost Reduction – IFS PACsecure will take on the IFS cost structure to ensure minimal cost to the supplier
• A global network of IFS offices and direction from PAC for technical support, and much, much more.

For more information on how to get started with the IFS PACsecure standard, please contact:
Larry Dworkin – PAC – This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. – 416-645-3282
George Gansner – IFS – This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. – 314-686-4610

Or contact any of the IFS offices or the Packaging Association of Canada.
www.ifs-certification.com
www.pac.ca

IFS press release

PAC press release