Protecting customers’ products from physical contamination is essential. During an IFS PACsecure Audit, failure to meet this requirement can result in a Major non-conformity with no new certificate issued until corrections are verified, or, worse, a withdrawal of an existing certificate. Either way, every customer that depends on a successful audit outcome could be at risk. In 2025 IFS PACsecure Audits, foreign material and chemical risk mitigation revealed that many sites came close to a Major score. Three in four deviations scored C or D, and they clustered in three areas: physical protection of the product (32%), chemical control (28%) and glass and brittle materials (28%).

Why it matters

Brands buy packaging assuming it will meet their expectations and not introduce a hazard to the products. A wood splinter, a metal fragment, or grease can trigger a complaint, a customer recall, and possibly a lost account. Chapter 4.12 asks each site to know its foreign material and chemical hazards, rank them by risk and prove the controls work. Without risk-based prevention, the requirement can be scored a Knock-out. When implemented well, these controls reduce complaints, scrap, and product holds, and give customers evidence that they can trust the packaging they buy.

Three actions that add value

1. Look up and around the production line. Map what sits above the product flow: walkways, platforms, ladders, pipes, belts and lights. Rank each by the level of risk. Eliminate hazards (e.g., solid decking, drip trays, sealed insulation) where possible; where not, implement controls and inspect as needed.

2. Make chemical control visible at a glance. Separate food-grade lubricants from non-food-grade using colour-coded labels or containers, lock cabinets, and keep safety data sheets and instructions for use in the areas where chemicals are handled. 

3. Use your glass, brittle materials and wood register as a working control, not just an audit document. List every such item in product zones and inspect each at a frequency determined by its risk to the product. Record every breakage and damage, along with the decision to isolate the product and approval to release the line. Eliminate the risk by replacing these materials wherever possible.

How IFS supports your implementation

Build a risk-based program: review the IFS Guideline for an effective Foreign Body Management. Although written for food manufacturers, its methods apply to packaging. Identify hazards at every process step, prevent them before detection, validate detection equipment, and handle incidents systematically. 

Test your site before the auditor does: conduct internal audits using the free IFS PACsecure Internal Audit Checklist and, once certified, use the IFS auditXpress Neo Software.

Build team capability: Train with approved IFS Training Providers and recognised IFS Consultants available on the IFS PACsecure webpage.