BSI boosts its food industry expertise in EMEA with appointment of food assurance expert Richard Werran

27 July 2017

Food industry certification expert Richard Werran has joined leading business improvement company, BSI (British Standards Institution) as EMEA Director for Food as part of the international organization’s commitment to meet increasing demand for standards, certification and assurance from the food industry.

BSI is scaling its food sector training and certification success in Asia and Pacific to Europe, Middle East and Africa, providing the full suite of ISO third party certification schemes. This includes Global G.A.P, FSSC22000 and BRC Global Standards as well as BSI’s HACCP & GMP certification. New food safety and fraud intelligence and assessment management modules, launched by BSI’s Supply Chain Risk Exposure Evaluation Network (SCREEN), also feature.

This reinforces BSI’s existing offering in this area with over 800 standards relevant to the food and drink industry covering food safety, packaging and processing, and chemical, microbiological and sensory analysis. BSI also provides assessment and certification for food safety management systems, and food safety risk management.

Richard Werran, EMEA Director for Food at BSI commented:

“It is essential for the food industry to think in innovative ways and discover for itself that many of the issues it has experienced - food safety and quality, years of broadening risk assessments, risk mitigation and risk avoidance – are, in fact, opportunities.

“Organizational Resilience is at the core of BSI’s strategy, to assist businesses in all sectors worldwide, including the food industry to develop business, advance market position, and enhance long-term prospects.  Today, the food sector is exposed to risk, due in part to a legacy of issues and setbacks stretching back many years; Organizational Resilience enables food businesses to convert risk into opportunity and become agile to gain competitive advantage. This refreshing forward-looking approach is at the heart of the new BSI EMEA Food team’s approach, with two Food Business Leaders conferences to be held in London and Asia later this year to introduce Organizational Resilience.”

With more than 37 years’ experience in the food and beverage industry, Werran has expertise in food production, ingredients, food assurance, training and certification with specialist knowledge of GM issues.  

Previously, Werran was Managing Director of Cert ID Europe, along with its sister company Foodchain ID, building the company from start-up into an accredited certification body for BRC global standards. In the field of non-GM, Werran was responsible for establishing Cert ID Non-GMO Standard as the class leading, market dominating Non-GMO industry standard in Europe and SE Asia. Werran is a Fellow of The Society of Food Hygiene & Technology and The Institute of Food Science & Technology.

BSI is currently recruiting a select EMEA team of food professionals including auditors, trainers, technical sales, operations and marketing. More information can be found here:

EMEA Product Champion – Food

Business Development Manager Agri-Food Sector

Business Development Executive - Agri-Food Sector

ENDS