Principles

The FSSC 24000 applies to organizations in the consumer goods industry and the related supply chain, covering the following sectors:

• Food, including pet food and beverages
• Textiles, clothing and leather
• Chemical industry
• Other non-food industry
• Wholesale and retail, including agents and brokers
• Hotels and restaurants
• Transport and storage
• Other (social) services

FSSC 24000 is based on PAS 24000. PAS 24000 outlines the principles for establishing a Social Management System (SMS) to improve social sustainability performance:

Risk-Based Thinking: Emphasizes identifying and managing social risks within the organization.

Process Approach: Focuses on understanding and managing interrelated processes to achieve consistent and predictable results.

Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) Cycle: Encourages continual improvement through a systematic approach to planning, implementing, monitoring, and reviewing processes.

Minimum Requirements for SMS: Specifies the essential criteria for a social management system suitable for auditing and certification, including requirements related to:

• Context of the organization
• Leadership
• Planning
• Support
• Operation
• Performance evaluation
• Improvement

Social Performance Criteria: Provides specific criteria to measure and improve social performance, such as:

• Human rights policy
• Forced labour
• Child labour
• Freedom of association
• Discrimination/Fair treatment of workers
• Occupational health and safety
• Building safety
• Employment and contractual relations
• Working hours
• Grievance mechanism
• Business ethics

For more information on the scheme documents, please access the Resource Hub section.