Salsa scheme targets micro breweries

Salsa, the Safe and Local Supplier Approval scheme for food hygiene, is considering a module for the UK’s growing number of micro breweries, similar to its module for specialist cheese makers.

The move could help many micro breweries reduce the number of audits to which they are subjected. The result would be considerable savings in both time and money from the need for multiple inspection visits.

For the Specialist Cheesemakers Association (SCA), Salsa scheme director Chris Grimes said: “We were able to produce in conjunction with them a module, which gives them a dual certification of Salsa plus the SCA code of practice.”

Grimes added: “You can see that there is potential to do that as and when the need arises … Where opportunities for modules arise, we will critically evaluate them.”

Salsa has looked at setting up a module for organic producers. However, Grimes reported it had hit a major hurdle in the form of European legislation, which stipulates that only nationally accredited schemes can be used for organic certification.

“So that’s an opportunity that is not open to us at the moment, but we were talking to Organic Farmers & Growers [an organic certification body] about it,” he said.

Salsa also investigated the possibility of a module for fish processors with Seafish, the UK authority dedicated to the promotion of high quality and sustainable seafood production.

Seafish uses Salsa for audits of smaller processors. However, after looking at setting up a dedicated module targeted at seafood processors, it concluded that one was not needed, provided auditors had expertise in the industry.