The purpose of IFS Management is to conduct the business activities in relation to the International Featured Standards ("IFS"). The primary function of the IFS is to provide a standardized process for monitoring the product safety and the quality of producers of food and other products (e.g. cosmetics, packaging materials etc.) as well as services such as logistics and trading activities. IFS Management is the sole owner of all rights of use and exploitation in relation to the International Trademark “IFS” (no. 1118296).
In Part A these terms and licensing conditions set out the requirements non-exclusive Auditors must meet to become an IFS Registered Auditor, the application and registration procedure for non-exclusive Auditors to become an IFS Registered Auditor as well as the terms and conditions as an IFS Registered Auditor. Auditors are deemed non-exclusive if they work for more than one registered IFS Certification Body.
In Part B these terms and licensing conditions set out the obligations of an exclusive IFS Auditor. An IFS Auditor is deemed exclusive if he/she works exclusively for one IFS Certification Body.
In Part C these terms and licensing conditions set out general regulations concerning both, the exclusive as well as non-exclusive IFS Auditors.
After having successfully submitted his/her registration form, the non-exclusive Auditor is being asked to pay the registration fee according to the latest schedule of fees with credit card.
After having successfully paid the registration fee, IFS Management grants the non-exclusive Auditor limited access to the IFS Audit Portal.
On the IFS Audit Portal the non-exclusive Auditor must fill out and submit the Curriculum Vitae form (CV-form) in order to apply for registration as IFS Registered Auditor. By filling out the CV-form the non-exclusive Auditor has to prove that he/she meets the requirements of the chapters 7.2 and 7.3.1 of ISO 19011 and that he/she possesses the expertise and experience which an IFS Auditor has to provide for each specific IFS Standard for which he/she wants to perform audits. Such requirements are laid down in Part 3 of each specific IFS Standard.
Before submitting his/her CV-form the non-exclusive Auditor has to expressly accept these General Terms and Licensing Conditions of IFS Management for IFS Auditors as well as the General Terms and Conditions of Use of IFS Management for the IFS Audit Portal. Furthermore the non-exclusive Auditor has to approve that he/she has acknowledged the IFS Integrity Program.
If the check comes to a positive result, IFS Management admits Auditor to take the mandatory written and if applicable oral exam for the first approval for any IFS Standard.
Additional approval processes can vary depending on the constellation of the respective IFS Standards, the auditors wishes to be approved for.
The procedure and exam process are laid down in Part 3 of each specific IFS Standard.
IFS Management will not repay the registration fee nor any starter package or course fee neither in full nor proportionally.
IFS Management will not repay the registration fee nor any starter package or course fee neither in full nor proportionally.
Upon accepting these General Terms and Licensing Conditions of IFS Management the exclusive Auditor undertakes to respect all rules laid down in the IFS Standards for IFS Auditors. Auditor knows and expressly accepts the IFS Integrity Program for Auditors including its sanctions and penalties for Auditors in cases in which Auditor breaches any IFS rule. Auditor is furthermore aware that in cases of severe breaches he/she can be suspended for a time frame of 3 (three) months as IFS Registered Auditor or might lose his/her Auditor’s approval.
If the exclusive Auditor gets another Level 1 breach (according to the IFS Integrity Program) within 2 (two) years after his/her first respectively last suspension the termination of his/her approval as IFS Registered Auditor will be announced and he/she has to pass the exams as necessary for the initial approval. The exclusive Auditor undertakes and accepts that he/she has to bear the costs for this additional written and oral examination necessary to get re-approved. IFS Management accepts that the fees are being paid by the Certification Body which is the Auditor’s employer.
Neither the non-exclusive nor the exclusive Auditor may transfer his/her registration as an IFS Registered Auditor to third parties. Registration is granted exclusively to the individual.
If the exclusive Auditor wishes to work as a non-exclusive IFS Auditor or if the non-exclusive Auditor wishes to work as an exclusive IFS Auditor he/she can change his/her status on the IFS Auditor portal anytime provided that he/she acknowledges the regulations and terms and conditions for the other status.
Berlin, 31.01.2018
Privacy Declaration
IFS Management GmbH (hereinafter: IFS) takes the protection of your personal data seriously and treats your personal data as confidential, and in accordance with the statutory data protection regulations. IFS collects, uses and stores personal data exclusively within the scope of the provisions of the German Federal Data Protection Act (Bundesdatenschutzgesetz – BDSG).
In this Privacy Declaration, we provide information about the nature, scope and purpose of the collection and use of this data. You can access this information at any time on our website.
Collection and Use of Data
We collect and use the personal data of every user insofar as this is required in order to enable the use of our website (usage data). This includes, in particular, features identifying the user and details on the start, end and scope of the use of the website. Any use of personal data for the purposes of advertising or market research or to aid the needs-based design of the website is carried out in accordance with the relevant statutory provisions.
Security
We maintain up-to-date measures to ensure data security. However, we draw your attention to the fact that online data transfers (e.g., when communicating via email) can be exposed to security vulnerabilities. It is not possible to ensure the seamless protection of data against access by third parties.
Server Logs
The provider of our website automatically collects and stores information in ‘server log files’, which your browser sends to us automatically. This information includes the date and time of access, location, country, state, region, town/city, URL (web address) of the referring website, the file retrieved, notification regarding successful retrieval, the browser type and the browser version, as well as information about the user’s operating system. We use this information solely for statistical purposes and for internal analysis purposes, such as improving the website. This data cannot be attributed to specific people. This data is not combined with other data sources.
Cookies
Cookies are used on our websites to make the web pages more attractive and to enable the use of certain functions. Cookies are small text files that are stored on your computer and enable your browser to be recognized. They therefore also enable us to determine how frequently our websites are visited and the volume of users. Session cookies are used on our websites. These are stored temporarily and only for the duration of the use of one of our web pages. They are then deleted automatically. Permanent cookies are also used in order to record information about users who visit our websites more than once. With the aid of permanent cookies, we can recognize users and ensure that they enjoy optimal use of our websites. Website users can prevent cookies from being stored on their computer by changing their browser settings. Cookies can be prevented from being stored by selecting the “Block all cookies” option in the browser settings. This may restrict the functionality of our websites.
Google Analytics
This website uses Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google Inc. (1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; “Google”). Google Analytics uses cookies. The information generated by the cookie about the use of this website is generally sent to a Google server in the USA and stored there. IP anonymization is activated on this website, which means that the IP addresses of users are truncated by Google within the Member States of the European Union or other Contracting States to the Treaty on the European Economic Area before being sent. The full IP address will only be sent to a Google server in the USA and truncated there in exceptional cases. On behalf of the operator of this website, Google will use this information to analyze the use of the website by users, to compile reports about website activities and to provide other services to the website operator in relation to website usage and Internet usage. The IP address sent by your browser as part of Google Analytics will not be combined with other data held by Google. As mentioned above, you can prevent cookies from being stored by changing the relevant setting in your browser software; however, you may not then be able to enjoy the full functionality of this website. In addition, users can prevent the data generated by the cookie relating to your use of the website (incl. your IP address) from being sent to and processed by Google by downloading and installing the browser plugin available at the following link:http://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=de On this website, the code “gat._anonymizeIp();” has been added to Google Analytics to ensure that recording of IP addresses is anonymous (IP masking). Further information on the terms of service and data privacy are available at http://www.google.com/analytics/terms/de.html and http://www.google.com/intl/de/analytics/privacyoverview.html
Contact Form
If you submit an enquiry to us using the contact form, we will store your details from the contact form, including the contact details you have provided therein, for the purposes of processing the enquiry and in case there are any follow-up questions. We will not pass on this data without your consent.
Use of the User Login Area
If you wish to use our user login area, you will need to register. To do this, you must first indicate whether you belong to an approved user group. You can then register by providing your email address and, where applicable, a password of your choosing. When you use the login area, we store the data required for fulfillment of the contract. We will not pass on this data without your consent.
Use of the Auditor Portal
If you wish to use our Auditor Portal, you must be an auditor and will need to register. To do this, you must enter your name, email address, telephone number, fax number and invoice address. You can then provide further details about your work as an auditor if you wish, in particular information about previous audits. You can also provide your CV. When you use the Auditor Portal, the data that you have provided voluntarily will be accessible to users of the login area.
Objection and Access to Information
You have the right to obtain information about your stored personal data, its origin and recipients and the purpose of data processing free of charge at any time, as well as the right to the correction, blocking or deletion of this data. For this and for any other questions regarding personal data, you can contact us via the address provided in the “Masthead” section at any time.
IFS Integrity Program
The IFS Integrity Program, launched in early 2010, includes different measures to assure the quality of the IFS certification schemes by reviewing audit reports of certified companies and by several measures to analyse and improve the work of certification bodies and auditors.
The IFS Integrity Program strengthens the reliability of the IFS schemes by checking the implementation of the IFS standards in practice.
The main procedures of IFS Integrity Program are described in the Annex 4 of the framework agreement; these procedures have been developed in regular meetings of the IFS Quality Assurance Working Group composed of international members. The Annex 4 of the framework agreement has to be signed by all certification bodies having a contract with IFS Management GmbH. Auditors performing IFS audits have to accept the IFS Integrity Program procedures to assure a qualitative performance of IFS audits. Certification bodies are obliged to inform their customers applying for an IFS audit certificate about the content of the Annex 4 of the framework agreement in current version. The IFS Integrity Program mainly works on the following activities:
A detailed complaint management process analyses all necessary information. Retailers or any other interested parties have the right to forward any possible complaint issue to IFS for investigation as part of the Integrity Program. The respective information can be forwarded by e-mail via
Based on the complaint reason the Integrity on-site Checks will mainly be performed unannounced (announcement 30 minutes before start of the Integrity on-site Check). In some special cases Integrity on-site Checks might also be performed announced (announcement in general about 48 hours before).
Quality Assurance activities of IFS Integrity Program monitor the entire IFS system by different tools:
In order to care for correct implementation of all procedures described in IFS standards and respective regulative documents IFS Integrity Program carries out regularly office audits at certification bodies (Integrity CB Office Audits). During these Integrity CB Office Audits work performance of IFS approved auditors and of certification bodies is checked by means of several report examples and database analyses. If during these Integrity CB Office Audits special topics have to be clarified, this could also lead to Integrity Witness Audits of IFS approved auditors or to Integrity on-site Checks at companies certified by the respective certification body.
Additionally — taking into account a risk based approach — reports of certified companies are analysed and read by IFS Quality Assurance Management staff. For the risk based approach different criteria have been defined by IFS Quality Assurance Working Group. These analyses are an ongoing monitoring procedure of IFS Quality Assurance Management taking into account both economic criteria (e.g. number of issued certificates in certain countries) or quality criteria (e.g. audit results, audit times etc.). As described before, Integrity on-site Checks will mainly be performed unannounced and in some special cases (depending on the case and the topic to be clarified) might also be performed announced. Integrity Witness Audits of IFS approved auditors may also be based on this risk based approach analysis of IFS Quality Assurance Management.
General comment for section I.1 and I.2:
Companies having a valid IFS certificate have to accept an unannounced/announced Integrity on-site Check and to give access and support to the commissioned Integrity auditor. The acceptance of the IFS Integrity Program is part of the regulations of all IFS standards. Also witnessing IFS approved auditors from certification bodies by commissioned Integrity auditors during regular IFS audits has to be accepted.
Integrity on-site Checks or Integrity Witness Audits and also Integrity CB Office Audits carried out as part of the Integrity Program are conducted by Integrity auditors employed at or commissioned by IFS Management GmbH. Integrity auditors are completely independent of the auditees and the IFS certification bodies.
If, following a complaint or following the risk based approach / monitoring quality assurance actions, the cause of a deficiency has been found to be the fault of a certification body and / or an auditor, IFS will forward all necessary information anonymously to an independent sanction committee. The sanction committee, which is made up of a lawyer and participants from industry, retailers and certification bodies, shall make a decision on whether a breach exists and on its severity.
Topics concerning administrative faults of certification bodies based on database investigations can be directly assessed by the IFS Quality Assurance Management, but have to be confirmed by the chairman (lawyer) of the sanction committee. Sanctions and/ or penalties will be issued to the certification body and/or its auditors if the sanction committee concludes that a breach has been committed. The type of sanction and/ or penalty depends on the severity of breach (see chapter II. 3 and II.5). In connection with each finally decided breach a certification body and /or an auditor may get a certain amount of “negative points”. These “negative points” are summarized, but the period of limitation is 2 years (rolling system). Only in very severe cases certification bodies or auditors might be suspended for a certain time frame or contracts might be cancelled. In general the target of IFS Integrity Program activities is to improve the performance of certification bodies and/or auditors by requesting corrective actions like attending at further trainings in case of decided breaches.
IFS Management informs the appropriate accreditation body if a breach for a certification body and / or for an auditor has been decided.
All these procedures concerning breaches, penalties and “negative points” are laid down in the Annex 4 of the framework agreement between IFS and each certification body.
IFS MANAGEMENT may conduct so-called Integrity on-site Checks, which are performed at IFS certified companies.
IFS MANAGEMENT shall in general ensure that the auditor in charge of the Integrity on-site Check has the technical and language skills (or that an interpreter is present) to conduct the relevant Check. In special cases the Integrity on-site Check might be carried out in English; such special cases will be considered due to the topics to be checked and taking the company involved into consideration. In addition, IFS MANAGEMENT shall guarantee the economic and personal independence of the auditor by ensuring prior to each Integrity on-site Check that the auditor has not had any economic relationship with the organization 2 years prior to the Integrity on-site Check, and that the auditor undertakes not to enter into an economic relationship with the organization for a period of 4 years following the Integrity on-site Check. Furthermore, the auditor shall sign a declaration of independence and confidentiality with IFS MANAGEMENT.
In general Integrity on-site Checks are performed unannounced. The decision of the duration of the Integrity on-site Check is up to IFS Quality Assurance Management.
If IFS MANAGEMENT decides, that based on the issue to be investigated (e.g. received complaints; special topics to be clarified with the need to have certain company´s representatives available) an announced Integrity on-site Check is necessary, IFS MANAGEMENT will apply an announcement procedure as follows:
Depending on the case and the topic to be clarified IFS MANAGEMENT may notify the certification body that is subject to the complaint and/ or the certified organization (by email and/ or fax using the contact details stored in the IFS database) 0-48 hours prior to the date of the Integrity on-site Check that an Integrity on-site Check will be conducted. In case IFS MANAGEMENT decides to notify the certification body as well as the certified company, IFS MANAGEMENT has to notify both parties at the same time prior to the date of the Integrity on-site Check. The certification body has the possibility to attend the Integrity on-site Check as observer.
If the certification body gets notified by IFS MANAGEMENT about the planned Integrity on-site Check, it is prohibited for the certification body to contact the certified company howsoever (also not through third parties). In the case the certified company contacts the certification body it is prohibited to give information concerning the upcoming Integrity on-site Check.
Integrity on-site Checks can be organized based on a complaint or can be planned by IFS Quality Assurance on a risk based approach.
The risk based approach may take into account the following topics:
a) With respect to companies to be checked risk factors to be taken into account may be:
Seasonal processes, production of “high risk products”, scope of the audit with product exclusions, outsourcing activities, company´s certification history, recalls, public notifications, special current food safety issues, identified non-conformities and other IFS Management indicators, etc.
b) With respect to auditors risk factors to be taken into account may be:
Reduction of audit duration in comparison with standard calculation rules, observations concerning final audit score or rating of standard requirements in the report, performance of auditors (e.g. based on already received breaches, results of Integrity CB Office Audits or Integrity on-site Checks, hints from received complaints), etc.
Integrity Witness Audits are IFS audits, whereby a regular IFS certification audit is attended by a witness auditor employed or commissioned by IFS MANAGEMENT. The aim is to examine the work of the auditor in an audit situation by observing the auditor’s method and assessments of the IFS requirements. Such audits are performed on the basis of an IFS checklist. The result of the Integrity Witness Audit is primarily based on the comparison between the assessments of the auditor and of the observing witness auditor. IFS MANAGEMENT and certification body agree on the date and the company where the Integrity Witness Audit shall take place.
Integrity Witness Audits may be based on a complaint received by IFS Quality Assurance for an auditor or internal investigations of IFS Quality Assurance.
Additional Integrity Witness Audits may be conducted when a penalty has been imposed against an IFS auditor. The main focus of this Integrity Witness Audit is then to ensure that the problem which led to the penalty has been rectified. A positive outcome results in the confirmation of the auditor approval for IFS audits.
Information about these Integrity Witness Audits will be forwarded to the certification body responsible for this audit and to the respective accreditation body. Reports of positive Integrity Witness Audits may also be used as one of the evidences requested by standard schemes to maintain ongoing IFS auditor approval. In case of deviations notified by observing the auditor’s method and assessments of the IFS requirements, the certification body has to define corrective actions. In case severe lacks are noticed in auditor´s performance (e.g. not noticing that product safety is in danger, that a breach of law occurs or customer requirements are not fulfilled), IFS MANAGEMENT will send this case to the sanction committee for final decision about a breach for the auditor.
The sanction committee consists of the following pool of people: a chairman (a lawyer), representatives from the retail sector, representatives from industry as well as representatives from certification bodies (without voting rights). If necessary, further guest participants (e.g. experts from accreditation bodies) can support the committee in technical questions; however, they do not have any voting rights. Each case will be assessed by 4 committee members (case team). These include the committee chairman and 1 representative each from retail, industry and certification bodies. The selection of each respective case team is performed by IFS MANAGEMENT using a random, rotational selection process and taking into account language issues of the documents to be investigated. IFS MANAGEMENT checks and ensures that the selected members are not dependent, whether directly or indirectly, on the organizations involved in the case. This means that members are not selected for a special case if they, e.g. have been involved as stakeholders in the complaint connected with this case or if there might be any connection known by IFS MANAGEMENT with respect to the involved certification body, auditor or company. Anyhow, cases sent to the case team of the sanction committee are made anonymous; so the members of the sanction committee will only have to decide about the topic.
The case team is responsible for deciding whether or not a Level 1 or Level 2 breach has occurred and for determining the level of breach. The case is only decided by the chairman and the representatives from retail and industry, as the representative from the certification body merely provides technical input and has no voting rights. The case team convenes once IFS MANAGEMENT has collected all the information required for the assessment of a case and has found conclusive evidence that an auditor and/ or a certification body might be in breach of the contract requirements or the relevant requirements of the IFS.
The case team additionally decides how much “negative points” are associated with the determined level of the breach according to the following system:
A Level 1 breach can be assessed with 15 or 20 “negative points” depending on the case.
A Level 2 breach can be assessed with 4 or 6 “negative points” depending on the case.
If breaches for auditors are decided the case team will additionally define, if applicable, the penalty for the auditor listed for the respective breach in connection with the assessed points (see chapter II. 5, Table II.5)
Note:
All “negative points” assessed for auditors will be summarized. For all summarized “negative points” the period of limitation will be 2 years (see chapter II.6)
In case a further Level 2 breach for the same auditor regarding the same issue within the 2 years period of limitation will be assessed, this will lead independent of the issue to an assessment with 6 “negative points”.
II. 3 (1) Decision by the sanction committee:
a) If a fault of an auditor is likely to have occurred, all relevant information shall be made accessible to the members of the sanction committee in an anonymous way in a protected area of the database. The sanction committee strives to decide within 4 weeks after the data has been made available whether a breach has been committed, what level of breach (Level 1 or Level 2) has occurred and how much “negative points” are associated with this breach (in case of breaches for auditors also the penalty to be applied).
Once the sanction committee has informed IFS MANAGEMENT of its decision, IFS MANAGEMENT shall check whether the auditor concerned has already got a certain amount of “negative points” and will inform the certification body and/ or the auditor about the status quo of “negative points”. Additionally based on the assessed level of breach and the connected “negative points” IFS MANAGEMENT will inform the certification body and/or the auditor about the imposed penalties. If a breach has been decided directly for an auditor IFS Management will inform all respective certification bodies, the auditor is working for, about the obligations and/or penalties for the respective auditor and about the assessed “negative points” connected with this breach.
There are two levels of breaches which an auditor might commit in the course of performing an IFS audit.
Topics, which are likely to result in a Level 1 or Level 2 breach, are forwarded to the sanction committee.
All examples mentioned below for the different levels of breaches are not exclusive, further topics can be also decided as breach Level 1 or 2 breach depending on the case.
Non-acceptable performance which calls into question the overall competence of the auditor: breach of contract requirements and/or IFS requirements which generally put product safety at risk and/or results in a breach of law. Relevant is only such law which is associated with the IFS certifications. A Level 1 breach can also be decided if there is objective evidence that an auditor committed a fraud.
Examples for Level 1 breaches for auditors
Severe error of an auditor when auditing a company, which puts product safety at risk and/ or leads to a breach of law.
The auditor provides incorrect information/ ratings in the audit report, which puts product safety at risk and/or results in a breach of law.
An audit was conducted by an auditor not having a current IFS approval at the time of the audit and also not being in the last step of the “IFS auditor in progress” process. The evaluation of the not approved auditor for the respective IFS standard put product safety at risk and/ or led to a breach of law.
The auditor mentioned in the audit report dates and times, but it is evident that he/ she was not at this site at the mentioned dates and times. There is objective evidence available that the wrong dates and times were notified in the audit report on purpose and that this is a fraud issue.
The auditor mentioned in the scope of the audit products, which demonstrably were not produced at the time of the audit. This incorrect audit put product safety at risk and/or led to a breach of law.
The auditor systematically informs in case of unannounced audits the respective company/ies before the audit date about the exact audit date or about a certain audit date timeframe, which is less than the time frame defined for unannounced audits in respective IFS regulations.
All examples mentioned above are not exclusive, further topics which generally put product safety at risk and/or result in a breach of law or are based on a fraud issue can be also decided by the sanction committee as a Level 1 breach and can be assessed with 15 or 20 “negative points” depending on the case.
Very poor performance of an auditor, requiring immediate and radical improvement measures: Incorrect behavior during an audit and/or breach of IFS rules in view of the required procedures of the certification process, which does not generally put product safety at risk and/or does not result in a breach of law. Relevant is only such law which is associated with the IFS certifications.
Examples for Level 2 breaches for auditors
The auditor provides incorrect information in the audit report not relating to product safety.
An auditor conducted an audit as lead auditor without any further co-auditor (or expert if this might be allowed according to current IFS rules) and did not have the scope approval for the product scope/s of the company. Additionally even if this auditor would apply for the missing scope/s approval at IFS office he/ she would not get the approval due to missing work or audit experience. This performance of the audit as not approved IFS auditor for the respective scope/s did not put product safety at risk and/or led to a breach of law.
An audit was conducted by an auditor (alone or in an audit team) not having the product scope/s and/or technical scope/s approval required to perform the audit. The missing product scope/s or technology scope/s is/are required to guarantee a qualitative and comprehensive audit of the company, but this audit performance did not put product safety at risk.
An audit was conducted by an auditor not having a current IFS approval for a certain standard at the time of the audit, but the auditor is already an approved IFS auditor for at least one IFS standard. This performance of the audit as not approved IFS auditor for the respective IFS standard did not put product safety at risk.
Indications in the CV of an auditor are demonstrably not correct.
The auditor mentioned in the audit report audit durations at certain audit days, but it is evident that these audit durations are wrong. There is objective evidence available, that the wrong audit durations were notified in the audit report on purpose and not just as a typing mistake.
In an individual case the auditor informs a company in case of an unannounced audit before the audit date about the exact audit date or about a certain audit date timeframe, which is less than the time frame defined for unannounced audits in respective IFS regulations.
An auditor is completely missing the requested regular training in accordance with IFS regulations and according to the rules defined in the IFS standards.
All examples mentioned above are not exclusive, further topics which show very poor performance of an auditor requiring immediate and radical improvement measures can be also decided by the sanction committee as a Level 2 breach and can be assessed with 4 or 6 “negative points” depending on the case.
IFS: All standards marketed by IFS MANAGEMENT under the brand of “International Featured Standards”.
II. 5 Penalties for auditors
Penalties for auditors will not be monetary penalties but demands to take part at internal trainings at the respective certification body responsible for the involved audit or to take part at courses organized by IFS or to get an Integrity Witness Audit (see Table II.5 below).
Note:
Breaches and “negative points” for auditors are individual-related and are independent from the certification body the auditor is connected to.
Within the period of limitation of 2 years all “negative points” assessed for an auditor will be summarized and if within 2 years in summary 20 “negative points” are reached, then this will lead to the same consequences as described below when reaching 20 “negative points” due to a Level 1 breach (suspension for 3 months).
Table II. 5
Level of breach and connected “negative points”
Obligations and/or penalties for the auditor
Level 2 breach (4 “negative points”)
Attendance at an internal CB training within 3 weeks from receipt of the letter with the decision about a breach.
Level 2 breach (6 “negative points”)
Attendance at an internal CB training within 3 weeks from receipt of the letter with the decision about a breach.
Demand to fulfill one of the following obligations (depending on the topic, which led to the assessment of this Level 2 breach); the obligation will be decided by the sanction committee:
To take part in an IFS training course (the kind of course to be defined by the sanction committee based on the topic leading to the breach) within 1 year after the decision date of the sanction committee about the breach.
To pass an Integrity Witness Audit to be planned within 1 year after the decision date of the sanction committee about the breach (procedure as described for Integrity Witness Audits in chapter III of this Annex).
Level 1 breach
(15 “negative points”)
Attendance at an internal CB training within 3 weeks from receipt of the letter with the decision about a breach.
Demand to fulfill both of the following obligations:
To take part in an IFS training course (the kind of course to be defined by the sanction committee based on the topic leading to the breach) within 1 year after the decision date of the sanction committee about the breach.
To pass an Integrity Witness Audit to be planned within next 3 months after the decision date of the sanction committee about the breach (procedure as described for Integrity Witness Audits in chapter III of this Annex).
Level 1 breach
(20 “negative points”)
Suspension for 3 months
Demand to take part in an IFS training course (kind of course to be defined by the sanction committee based on the topic leading to the breach) within this time frame of 3 months
Integrity Witness Audit has to be planned and to be passed for one of the first 3 IFS audits of this auditor after suspension (procedure as described for Integrity Witness Audits in chapter III of this Annex).
If an auditor gets a Level 1 breach within 2 years after his/ her first suspension the termination of his approval as IFS auditor will be announced and he will have to pass again the written and oral examination as for initial approval.
If an internal training has to be carried out for the auditor the respective certification body responsible for the involved audit has to send evidences for the trainings to IFS Quality Assurance within 3 weeks from receipt of the letter with the decision about a breach.
In general the costs concerning Integrity on-site Checks, Integrity Witness Audits, training courses organized by IFS the auditor is obliged to take part in or sanction committee costs, if they have been occurred for the case or will be necessary due to the penalties, have to be paid by the respective certification body responsible for the involved audit.
Note:
For non-exlusive auditors it is defined in chapter 6.3 of the General terms and licensing conditions of IFS Management GmbH ("IFS Management") for "IFS Auditors" that in case of re-registration after a suspension the non-exclusive Auditor undertakes and accepts that he/she has to bear the costs for the IFS training course as well as the Integrity Witness Audit.
The period of limitation for previously committed breaches and the assessed “negative points” is 2 years for auditors.
Example 1:
Breach assessed 10.05.2018
Period of limitation (2 years) for this breach starts 10.05.2018
No further breach assessed until 10.05.2020 -> breach and linked “negative points” lapse
Example 2:
Breach assessed 10.05.2018
Period of limitation (2 years) for this breach starts 10.05.2018
Further breach assessed on 15.10.2018 -> 2 breaches and the linked “negative points” in summary
Further breach assessed on 06.07.2019 -> 3 breaches and the linked “negative points” in summary
No further breach assessed until 10.05.2020 -> 1st breach and linked “negative points” lapse, but 2nd and 3rd breach and the linked “negative points” in summary remain.
Issue Date: January 2018
IFS Management GmbH fully owns the copyright of all IFS Publications and the registered trademarks. The IFS Logos shall be downloaded via the secured section of the IFS Database.
Furthermore, the terms and conditions below shall be communicated to the assessed company by the certification body and checked by the auditor during the assessment. The results of this check shall be described in the company profile of the assessment report as a compulsory field. If the auditor identifies that the company does not fullfil those terms and conditions, IFS shall be informed accordingly.
These terms and conditions apply for all IFS Logos.
Only the latest version of the IFS Logos shall be used. When used, the IFS Logo(s) shall comply with the form and colour of the scale drawing. If used in documents, black and white print is also permitted. Companies shall only use the logo of the standard(s) they are certified for. The respective logo can be used from the announcement of the certification until the end of the certification validity.
The general IFS Logo can only be used to express that the certification body or the IFS Consultant supports IFS Certified Companies, or that the certification body offers certification for more than one IFS Standard. All other forms of use shall be agreed with IFS.
The IFS Logo(s) can be used in print, electronic form and in films, as long as the form and format are fulfilled. The same conditions apply to the use of the logo(s) as a stamp.
When an IFS Certified Production Site, an IFS Supporting Company or an IFS Certification Body publishes documents bearing the IFS Logo(s), comments and interpretations referring to IFS shall be clearly identifiable as such.
The IFS Logo(s) shall not be displayed on the product itself, primary packaging of the product, or any kind of advertising document likely to reach the end-consumer (e.g. intercompany sales packaging, public exhibitions for end consumers, product specific brochures for end consumers, etc.). The logo(s) can only appear on a website section related to quality management or to quality and safety in general. It shall not be used for any kind of business-to-consumer marketing. It shall be clear that all information concerning certification clearly refers to IFS.
The IFS Logo(s) shall not be used in presentations that have no clear connection to IFS.
An IFS Certified Production Site, which accepts IFS Certificates from its suppliers or service providers (brokers, logistics service providers or wholesalers) or an IFS Certification Body may use the general IFS Logo for promotional reasons and publish information about IFS Certification. If they have no certification of their own, it shall be clearly stated that the company supports or works with IFS Certified Companies. Any kind of use that gives the impression that the company itself is certified is not accepted.
The IFS Logo(s) shall not be used in any way that may imply that IFS Management GmbH is responsible for the certification decision. In case of suspension or withdrawal of the IFS Certificate, the assessed production site and company have to immediately stop including the IFS Logos on their documents and/or website. In case of exclusion regarding the assessment scope, the IFS Logo may continue used, but the following claim shall be written at the bottom: “Some products are excluded from the scope of the IFS Assessment. Exclusion details can be provided upon request.” It is also possible to list only those products that fall under the respective IFS Certification.
All the rules mentioned above apply to any communication regarding the IFS Standards and Global Markets programs. This also means that it is not allowed to use the wordmarks “IFS”, “International Featured Standards”, or “IFS plus name of standard/Global Markets program” or similar on finished products which are available to the end consumer.
Berlin, Januar 2012,IFS Management GmbH, Stephan Tromp, General Manager