JCS Fish attains stringent new food safety standard

Family-owned Grimsby seafood firm, JCS Fish, has become one of the first businesses in the Yorkshire and Humber region of the UK to achieve accreditation to the new Issue 8 of the BRC Global Standard for Food Safety.

Auditing to the new standard began 1 February 2019 and JCS Fish undertook its annual BRC audit in the same month, receiving its AA Grade certificate last week. The BRC Global Standard for Food Safety is the most widely used of the commercial standards for assuring the production of safe food, and is a universal benchmark set by the UK’s major retailers to identify suitable suppliers.

JCS Fish has been accredited to the BRC standard since 2008 and first achieved AA status in 2017. Quality manager, Ann Rogers, oversees the process and says, “The new BRC regime proved tougher than any of those we’ve done before, with nine sections rather than the previous seven and an even stronger emphasis on achieving the right food culture in a business. I am so proud of the whole team; whilst QA is responsible for documents and training, we couldn’t achieve these standards without the co-operation and enthusiasm of everyone at JCS Fish.”

JCS Fish specialises in the processing and supply of salmon products and continues to grow both its foodservice business and its BigFish Brand. It recently achieved a new listing for its BigFish salmon fillets and smoked salmon products in ‘As Nature Intended’, a fast-growing London-based natural foods retailer with six outlets.

Director, Louise Coulbeck, says, “It has been a great first quarter for our business, we’re a close-knit team and it is a pleasure when we continue to achieve important accreditations such as our BRC AA status, which is a stiff test even for much larger organisations than our own.”