Templates and records · BRCGS · Clause 3.5.1

BRCGS raw material and supplier risk assessment

First the risk of each raw material is assessed; that risk then determines how the supplier is approved and what is checked at goods-in.

In one sentence

The BRCGS raw material and supplier risk assessment analyses each raw material or group against its hazards — allergens, foreign bodies, microbiology, chemicals, substitution or fraud — and, depending on the outcome, sets how the supplier is approved — GFSI-recognised certification, audit or, for low risk only, a questionnaire — and which controls apply at goods-in, because clause 3.5.1 is a fundamental requirement.

Content reviewed on 17 October 2026

Where the standard requires it: BRCGS · Clause 3.5.1 Clause references follow the numbering of BRCGS Food Safety Issue 9. If your audit is already against a later issue, check the correspondence on brcgs.com.
Type of information: Mandatory record Record to be retained (3.5.1, fundamental requirement)
Who fills it in: Quality, with purchasing The risk assessment is done by quality or the HACCP team; approval by quality
When: Before purchasing and at least every three years Also after a change, a new risk or a related recall
How long it is kept: Shelf life plus 12 months, at least BRCGS requires a retention period to be set taking into account legislation, the customer and the product's shelf life, and as a minimum records must be kept for the shelf life plus twelve months (3.3).

What the standard requires

What BRCGS demands and what it leaves to your judgement

BRCGS requires a documented risk assessment of each raw material or group of raw materials, packaging included, considering at least allergen contamination, foreign bodies, microbiological and chemical contamination, substitution or fraud, and any risk linked to legal requirements. The assessment is the basis of the approval procedure and of goods-in controls.

It is reviewed when the raw material, process or supplier changes, when a new risk emerges, after a recall affecting that raw material and, in any case, at least every three years.

Supplier approval rests on current certification to a GFSI-recognised scheme, on a supplier audit or, only where the assessment justifies a low risk, on a questionnaire. Ongoing performance monitoring follows.

Read it in context: Food safety and quality management system, in the BRCGS Academy

Structure

Fields the template should include

Raw material or group, packaging included
Hazards assessed: allergens, foreign bodies, microbiology, chemicals, fraud, legal
Risk level and justification
Supplier approval method and evidence
Resulting goods-in controls: testing, certificates, inspection
Supplier performance monitoring
Date of assessment and next review

Example

Example: assessment of skimmed milk powder for a fictitious sauce plant

Company, people and figures are fictitious: the example only shows what a properly completed record looks like.

Field	Content
Raw material	Skimmed milk powder · supplier Northern Dairies (fictitious)
Allergens	Milk (declared intrinsic allergen) · traces of soya at the supplier's plant
Microbiology	Medium risk: Salmonella and Cronobacter in dairy powder
Fraud	Low-medium risk: addition of whey or melamine, according to sector alerts
Level	High
Approval	Current FSSC 22000 certificate · own audit in 2025
Goods-in	Certificate of analysis per batch and own Salmonella test every 10 batches
Review	March 2026 · next in March 2029, or sooner if anything changes

At the audit

Mistakes auditors commonly flag

A single generic assessment for every raw material.
Fraud or substitution risk is not considered.
High-risk suppliers approved on a questionnaire alone.
The assessment has not been reviewed for more than three years.
Goods-in controls that do not match the assessed risk.

In Kimobox

How this record is kept in Kimobox

1Each raw material has its risk assessment and its approved supplier in the supplier portal.
2Supplier certificates are tracked for expiry; if an essential one lapses, the supplier is blocked.
3The three-yearly review and change-triggered reviews are scheduled with advance warning.
4Goods-in rejections and nonconformities raised against the supplier feed its ongoing evaluation.

Frequently asked questions

What people ask us before getting started

When is a questionnaire enough to approve a supplier?

Only when the raw material risk assessment justifies that the risk is low. In all other cases BRCGS expects a GFSI-recognised certification or a supplier audit.

How often must the risk assessment be reviewed?

After any significant change, a new risk or a recall affecting the raw material, and in any case at least every three years.

Is packaging assessed too?

Yes. Packaging materials, especially food-contact ones, are included in the risk assessment and in supplier approval.

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Sources

Where each figure comes from

References to the official text in force. If a standard is revised, this page is updated and the review date says so.

BRCGS Global Standard for Food Safety, Issue 9 BRCGS · Published August 2022
Schemes recognised by the Global Food Safety Initiative GFSI · Official list