Why this matters
BRCGS provides a recognised assurance framework, but customers may add specifications, codes of practice, reporting routes, test methods or approval conditions. The site needs one controlled view of where those requirements apply and how they affect operating decisions.
- Search intent
- Food-sector leaders seeking a controlled way to manage customer-specific technical requirements alongside BRCGS and site standards.
- Read time
- 4 min read
- Hub
- BRCGS / BRC Support
Short answer
Create a controlled register that maps each current customer requirement to affected sites, products and processes; identifies the responsible owner and evidence; records differences from core site controls; and triggers review when the customer, product or requirement changes.
What this means in practice
A multi-customer chilled-food site uses one metal-detection process across several lines. A new retailer specification introduces a different challenge-test convention and notification route for its products. Managers must decide whether to adopt the higher control site-wide or manage a customer-specific route without creating confusion at line changeovers.
Start with applicability. A customer code may contain many statements, but only some alter work at a particular site or for a particular product. Record the source, version, effective date, affected scope and person accountable for interpretation. This prevents a broad document from becoming an unmanaged collection of assumptions.
Map each applicable point to the operating control that fulfils it. The evidence may be a specification approval, check, competence record, test result, supplier condition or reporting workflow. Where the existing site control already meets the requirement, reference that source rather than creating duplicate paperwork.
Make differences explicit. A customer may request a different sample frequency, escalation route, evidence format or approval step. The manager needs to know whether the difference changes risk control, administration or both. That distinction informs training, system configuration and the strength of change control required.
Resolve conflicting expectations through authorised technical and commercial decisions. Frontline teams should not be left to choose between customer instructions during production. Determine whether one control can satisfy all products, whether scheduling or line designation can separate routes, or whether the business needs clarification from the customer.
Consider whole-life cost before adopting every enhanced requirement site-wide. A common higher standard can simplify training and reduce changeover error, but may add testing, material or delay that brings no benefit to other products. A managed customer-specific control can be more proportionate, provided its visibility and execution remain dependable.
Control revisions as operational changes. Compare the new version with the previous one, assess affected procedures, forms, system fields, labels, suppliers and competence, then assign implementation evidence. A received document is not implemented merely because it sits in the technical folder.
Put the current instruction where work happens. Supervisors should be able to identify which requirement applies to the scheduled product and what to do if the expected evidence is unavailable. Remove obsolete versions and make temporary transition arrangements visible across shifts.
Test effectiveness after implementation. Sample real product and action trails to confirm that the intended customer route was followed, evidence was captured and exceptions reached the right decision-maker. Where errors recur, review whether the control is too complex rather than defaulting immediately to retraining.
Use management review to identify themes across customer requirements. Repeated bespoke requests may justify a stronger common site control or a system improvement. Conversely, low-use requirements with high administrative cost may need commercial discussion before renewal or range expansion.
WorkSafe can connect requirement versions, applicability, owners, actions and evidence for WRMH customers. Role-based views can show supervisors what applies without exposing every commercial document, while leaders retain oversight of changes and exceptions. WorkSafe supports more reliable requirement control but does not interpret contracts, guarantee BRCGS certification or promise customer approval.
Key checks
- Which current customer document is authoritative, and who receives and approves revisions?
- What products, lines, sites, shifts and suppliers fall within each requirement's scope?
- Where does the customer requirement differ from the site's core control or another customer's expectation?
- What evidence demonstrates implementation at the point where the requirement affects work?
- Who decides whether a customer-specific control becomes the site standard or remains a managed exception?
- How are obsolete instructions withdrawn and affected people shown the current requirement?
Common mistakes
- Treating certification as proof that every customer-specific requirement is automatically satisfied.
- Creating duplicate checks when a current site control already provides suitable evidence.
- Leaving operators to resolve conflicting customer instructions during production.
- Recording a revised customer document without assessing operational changes.
- Adopting every enhanced requirement site-wide without considering complexity and whole-life cost.
What good looks like
Every current requirement has a controlled source, clear scope, competent owner and mapped evidence. Differences from core controls are visible, conflicts are resolved before production, revisions trigger managed change and leaders can explain why a requirement is site-wide or customer-specific.
When to use WorkSafe
Use WorkSafe when customer codes, specifications and action commitments are difficult to connect with live site controls. Start with one high-volume customer, map each applicable requirement to its owner and evidence, and flag every point that still depends on local memory.
Select one customer code and build a single applicability map showing the current requirement, affected operation, owner, evidence and unresolved differences.