What SQF audit preparation should accomplish
SQF preparation is not just cleaning the facility the week before an audit. The site needs controlled documents, complete records, trained employees, working prerequisite programs, verified food safety plans, and evidence that issues are corrected.
Use this checklist with the HACCP Plan Guide, Food Safety Plan Template, and templates hub.
Document control
Review:
- Current policy manual or food safety quality manual, if used.
- Approved procedures.
- Current forms and logs.
- Revision history.
- Obsolete document controls.
- External documents such as customer requirements and supplier documents.
- Records retention expectations.
Auditors commonly look for consistency between the procedure and the record. If a procedure says a check is daily, the records should support that frequency or show documented corrective action.
HACCP and food safety plan readiness
Check:
- Product scope and product descriptions.
- Flow diagrams verified against the floor.
- Hazard analysis.
- CCPs or preventive controls.
- Monitoring records.
- Corrective action records.
- Verification and validation support.
- Annual review or reassessment.
The file should be easy to follow from hazard to control to record.
Practical checklist
- Complete an internal audit against the current SQF Code and site procedures.
- Close or justify open CAPAs.
- Review pest control, sanitation, GMP, allergen, training, calibration, supplier approval, and maintenance records.
- Verify label control and allergen review records.
- Confirm traceability and mock recall records are complete.
- Review customer complaints and trend actions.
- Confirm management review has occurred and actions are tracked.
- Walk the facility with the same attention an auditor will bring.
- Prepare key records in an audit file or digital folder.
- Train supervisors on where records live and who can explain programs.
Common mistakes
Common mistakes include focusing only on the production floor, leaving CAPAs open without explanation, keeping outdated forms in use, missing signatures or review dates, and failing to connect internal audit findings to corrective actions.
Another mistake is preparing documents that employees cannot explain. Audit readiness includes practical understanding, not only binders.
QA perspective
From a QA perspective, audit readiness is built through normal operating discipline. Records should be complete because the process happened correctly, not because someone reconstructed them later.
The best SQF preparation is a calm gap review: current code, site procedures, recent records, open issues, and evidence that the food safety system is working.
Source notes
Use current official SQF materials and qualified support for final audit preparation:
- SQFI SQF Food Safety Program.
- SQFI SQF Codes.
- FDA Current Good Manufacturing Practice, Hazard Analysis, and Risk-Based Preventive Controls for Human Food where FDA preventive controls requirements apply.
FAQ
Can this checklist replace the SQF Code?
No. This is an educational preparation guide. Sites should use the current SQF Code, guidance, customer expectations, and qualified support for final audit preparation.
What should be checked first before an SQF audit?
Start with document control, food safety plan or HACCP file, prerequisite programs, recent records, internal audit status, CAPA status, and management review.
How early should a site prepare?
Preparation should be ongoing. A focused readiness review several weeks or months ahead can help identify missing records, open CAPAs, outdated documents, and training gaps.