IFS – International Featured Standards | Certified Food Logistics

Frigoimpex Global Kft. holds an IFS Logistics certification, and its logistics processes — from refrigerated transport to warehousing — are fully audited and comply with the requirements of the globally recognised IFS standards framework.

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IFS (International Featured Standards) is a globally recognised, unified quality and food safety standards framework, originally created by retail chains and manufacturers. It defines a rigorous and detailed set of requirements that guarantee products manufactured by — or logistics services provided by — a certified organisation are completely safe, traceable and fully compliant with the highest customer specifications.

Compliance with commercial and consumer expectations today goes far beyond basic legal requirements. The IFS system provides a highly detailed, score-based audit framework for the comprehensive assessment of business and operational processes, helping to minimise the risk of product recalls, increase operational efficiency, and gain entry into the supplier networks of domestic and international retail chains.

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Six Key Pillars of IFS

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• Top management commitment: Presence and continuous support of a quality- and safety-focused corporate culture.

• Quality and food safety management system: Documented and structured operation based on HACCP principles.

• Resource management: Continuous staff training, adherence to hygiene requirements and provision of adequate personnel conditions.

• Operational processes (Production / Service): Precisely regulated and controlled execution of product manufacturing, packaging or transport.

• Measurement, analysis and improvement: Regular internal audits, product analyses, metal and foreign body detection, and immediate handling of non-conformities.

• Food defence and anti-fraud measures: Actions to prevent intentional, malicious contamination of products and to screen out fraudulent raw materials.​

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About the Certificate

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IFS was founded by the German (HDE) and French (FCD) retail federations, with the aim of assessing own-brand product manufacturers through a common, transparent system. The standards family has since become global, branching out into specific areas such as IFS Food (food manufacturing) and IFS Logistics (transport, warehousing and distribution).

The distinguishing feature of the standard lies in its scoring system: during audits, auditors not only assess compliance but also evaluate the level of development of processes, encouraging continual improvement.

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Key Chapters of IFS

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• Corporate governance and commitment

• Food safety and quality management system (HACCP focus)

• Human resource management and training

• Planning and service / production processes

• Measurement, analysis, complaints and corrective actions

• Corporate and product protection plan (Food Defence / Auditing)

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Relationship to Other Management System Certifications

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IFS builds closely on the principles of HACCP and the structure of ISO 9001 quality management, but imposes significantly more specific and practice-oriented requirements than either. It integrates seamlessly with ISO 22000 (Food Safety Management System). In logistics and cold-store environments, the IFS Logistics requirements work in perfect synergy with GDP (Good Distribution Practice), since both systems centre on an unbroken cold chain, containment, and the complete elimination of cross-contamination.