As noted above, in the December 7, 2016, Federal Register, FDA announced the availability of a guidance for industry and FDA staff titled "Third-Party Certification Body Accreditation for Food Safety Audits: Model Accreditation Standards." The guidance contains FDA recommendations on third-party certification body qualifications for accreditation to conduct food safety audits and to issue food and/or facility certifications under the FSMA. The guidance describes the standards for accreditation of third-party certification bodies as required under the regulations. In addition, the guidance recommends that accreditation bodies consider using certain clauses of IOS/IEC conformity assessments as a model when making accreditation decisions.
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