FSSC 22000 v6 to v7 Upgrade: A Step-by-Step Transition Plan

Where do you start the move to Version 7?

Start by pinning down the date of your upgrade audit. According to the Foundation FSSC’s upgrade process document, it is not a separate audit: it is your next scheduled audit, surveillance or recertification, between 1 May 2027 and 30 April 2028.

Put three questions to your certification body in writing, now:

1. On what date, or in what period, will our upgrade audit take place?
2. Can this audit be the unannounced surveillance of our cycle?
3. What audit duration have you recalculated under the v7 rules, and when will we receive the contract addendum?

The certification body has to inform its certified clients within three months of publication in any case. If it has not done so, chase it. Without a date, there is no plan.

What are the steps of the upgrade plan?

The plan has eight steps. The order matters: training comes before the gap analysis, and the internal audit comes last, once the actions are complete.

Schedule steps 1 to 4 as soon as the audit date is known. The works in step 6 (floors, zone separation, equipment) are often the critical path: building work in peak season is rarely possible in a fish cannery or a fruit packhouse.

How do you handle the move to the ISO 22002-x:2025 PRPs?

This is the heart of the upgrade. The Foundation FSSC FAQ sums it up: the ISO/TS 22002-x series has been replaced by the ISO 22002-x:2025 series, which becomes a set of international standards. Part 100 groups the requirements common to all sectors, and a sector part completes it.

In practice:

• a food manufacturer applies ISO 22002-100:2025 and ISO 22002-1:2025;
• a packaging-only manufacturer applies Part 100 and ISO 22002-4, not ISO 22002-1;
• a cold store or a carrier applies Part 100 and ISO 22002-5;
• an animal feed manufacturer applies Part 100 and ISO 22002-6.

The effective method is to rebuild your PRP cross-reference table. For each clause of the new Part 100 and of the sector part, record the procedure, instruction or record that meets it, and any gap. Do not simply renumber your old references.

Two examples taken from the scheme show how the new standards and the additional requirements fit together. Food defence and food fraud (additional requirements 2.5.3 and 2.5.4) now come on top of clauses 16.2 and 16.3 of ISO 22002-100:2025. Part 100 also deals with food loss and waste (clause 8.1), but only to prevent contamination; the reduction strategy falls under additional requirement 2.5.16.

We do not reproduce a clause-by-clause mapping between the old ISO/TS 22002-x and the 2025 standards here: they are paid ISO standards, and the table is built on the text the site has purchased, requirement by requirement.

Which additional requirements should you review first?

Start with the ones that are new or whose scope has moved, then those that generate the most findings in your sector. The Foundation states that some requirements have been updated or strengthened, and others removed because ISO 22002-x now covers them.

What the official documents confirm:

• 2.5.13 g, new in v7. Sites that design primary packaging must take design principles into account: protect the product, preserve its shelf life, limit losses and inform the consumer clearly, without ever compromising food safety.
• 2.5.16, food loss and waste. A policy, measurable objectives with deadlines, and control of donations and of by-products sent for animal feed. It does not apply to the packaging category (I).
• 2.5.12, PRP verification. Regular site inspections, at a risk-based frequency, linked to the applicable technical specification: your inspection checklists must therefore refer to the new standards.
• Audit duration. The exemption for sites with fewer than 20 FTE now covers up to 2 HACCP studies, with no “simple process” condition.
• Other modified headings. Label printing (2.5.2 d) now applies to any site that prints labels, PRP verification is extended to categories E and FI, and subcategory C0 gets a carcass traceability requirement (2.5.14). The full list is in the Foundation’s Changes Version 6 and Version 7 – Scheme document.

Also check the list of Board of Stakeholders decisions published with v7. These decisions are mandatory and must be applied within the transition period.

Which mistakes make an upgrade fail?

Failures rarely come from the standard itself. They come from the calendar, the organisation and too quick a reading of the new PRPs. These are the mistakes to avoid.

• Waiting for the certification body’s letter. A site that finds out in March 2027 that its audit is in May no longer has time for building works.
• Renumbering instead of analysing. Changing “ISO/TS 22002-1” to “ISO 22002-1:2025” in your procedures proves nothing. The auditor checks the content.
• Forgetting the unannounced audit. If the upgrade coincides with the unannounced surveillance, the system must be ready from 1 May 2027.
• Training internal auditors too late. An internal audit carried out against the old scheme will not detect v7 gaps.
• Overlooking service providers. Laboratories, pest control companies, carriers: their contracts and reports must follow your new requirements.
• Underestimating culture. Food safety and quality culture objectives must be measured and presented at management review, not just posted on a wall.
• Ignoring the contract addendum. The recalculated audit duration affects your budget and your teams’ schedules.

Which checklist should you use before the upgrade audit?

Use a close-out checklist, to be signed off by management two to four weeks before the audit. If a box is still empty, the audit is at risk.

• Date or period of the upgrade audit confirmed in writing.
  
• v7 addendum or new contract signed.
  
• Version 7 scheme, annexes and list of Board of Stakeholders decisions available and under control.
  
• ISO 22002-100:2025 and the sector part purchased and built into the document system.
  
• PRP cross-reference table complete, with gaps closed or scheduled with interim measures.
  
• Additional requirements 2.5.1 to 2.5.18 reviewed, with applicability justified for your category.
  
• PRP inspection checklists (2.5.12) updated and used for at least one cycle.
  
• Environmental monitoring programme reviewed (categories BIII, C, I and K).
  
• Food loss and waste policy and objectives in place, if your category is concerned.
  
• Food safety and quality culture plan with targets, deadlines and measures.
  
• Food safety team and internal auditors trained on v7.
  
• Full v7 internal audit completed, corrective actions under way.
  
• Management review held after the internal audit.
  

If your site is not yet certified, this plan does not apply as it stands: follow the full FSSC 22000 Version 7 certification path in Morocco instead. The key dates are summarised in our article on the Version 7 timeline, and the budget to plan for in FSSC 22000 certification cost in Morocco.