Unannounced IFS audits: how to keep your team ready on any day

Preparing a team for an IFS or BRCGS audit no longer means a review the week before: at least one in every three IFS audits is unannounced, so training has to be up to date on any day of the year.

At least one in every three IFS certification audits happens without notice. The standard sets a window from 16 weeks before to 2 weeks after the due date, and the site isn't told the day.¹ That completely changes how a team gets ready for a quality audit.

The classic model (an intensive review, folders checked and a talk to plant staff the week before) works when you know when the auditor is coming. With an 18-week window, it stops working. In this article we look at what the audit checks on training, where companies usually fall short, and how to use internal audits to stay ready all the time.

What an IFS or BRCGS audit checks on staff training

Training isn't only audited in the quality folder. Section 3.3 of IFS Food v8, on training and instruction, requires:²

Documented programmes covering content, frequency, employee task, languages, a qualified trainer and evaluation of effectiveness.
Training before starting work for all staff, including temporary and seasonal workers and employees of external companies.
Records with participants and signatures, date, duration, content and trainer, plus a procedure to prove that training is effective.
Review and update of content when needed, taking into account feedback from previous training.

BRCGS points the same way. In Issue 9, the training clause replaced "relevant personnel" with simply "staff": all staff must be trained before starting work, according to the summary of changes published by Mérieux NutriSciences.³

Both standards share something a folder can't prove on its own: that training works. The auditor checks that on the plant floor, by watching and asking the people on the line.

Where training usually falls short when the auditor arrives

The most common training failures aren't missing documents, but the gap between what's documented and what happens on the shift:

What the standard requires	Where it usually fails	How to have it ready on any day
Training before starting work	Temporary and external staff start before the group session	Initial training available on day one, without waiting to gather a group
Training in the appropriate language	Material only in Spanish for a multilingual workforce	Every piece available in the languages the workforce actually speaks
Evaluation of effectiveness	Only a signature sheet exists	A practical check at the station, recorded by the shift lead
Up-to-date content	Training is last year's, and the HACCP plan has changed	Each content item's review date is the same as or later than the procedure's
Staff who can answer	The operator can't explain the control at their station	Short role-based pieces reviewed before each peak season

The middle column is what shows up in non-conformity reports. The right-hand column is what turns an unannounced audit into a normal day.

How to use internal audits to stay ready all year

If the external audit can arrive on any day, the internal audit stops being a yearly formality and becomes the ongoing rehearsal. These three habits make it manageable.

Habit 1: audit training on the plant floor, not in the office

The internal training audit has to include questions to operators at their station, just as the external auditor will: what do you control here, what do you do if the reading goes out of limit, who do you tell. Five questions per line and shift tell you more than reviewing a hundred records.

Habit 2: turn every internal finding into a dated training action

If an operator can't answer, the finding isn't closed with a note in the report. It's closed when that person, and others in the same role, have reviewed the content and shown they know it. IFS specifically asks that training reviews take into account feedback from previous training.²

Habit 3: keep training in sync with the HACCP plan

Every change in procedure, recipe or equipment has to reach the training for the affected role. Platforms that generate training from the procedure itself, such as Vidext, cut that lag down to hours, but the principle works with any tool: a training item's review date should never be earlier than that of the procedure it explains.

Official control points the same way. In the food safety management system audits carried out by Spanish authorities, the share of establishments with no non-conformities rose from 49.25% in 2021 to 84.04% in 2024, and the checklists include the training of those responsible.⁴ Companies that audit their training continuously arrive better prepared for any audit, announced or not.

For the full framework on what the rules require for HACCP training and food safety culture, read our guide to HACCP training and Regulation 2021/382.

Conclusion: an unannounced audit only worries those who prepare in bursts

The unannounced audit rule doesn't add new training requirements; it removes the option of meeting them only the week before. A company where every role is trained before starting, in their language, with up-to-date content and checks on the floor doesn't need to know when the auditor is coming. That's the real standard IFS and BRCGS set today.

Frequently asked questions

How often are IFS audits unannounced?

At least one in every three IFS certification audits must be unannounced. It takes place within a window from 16 weeks before to 2 weeks after the due date, without notifying the site of the day. Companies can choose to have more unannounced audits voluntarily.

What training documentation does an IFS audit review?

Training programmes with their content, frequency, languages and trainer; records with participants, signatures, date, duration and content; and the procedure that proves training effectiveness. The auditor also usually checks on the floor that staff can apply what they learned.

Do temporary and external workers need training before an audit?

They need training before they start work, audit or not. IFS Food v8 explicitly includes temporary staff, seasonal workers and employees of external companies, and BRCGS Issue 9 extends the requirement to all staff.

How do you prove training effectiveness to an auditor?

With evidence beyond attendance: results of questions or tests after training, practical checks at the station recorded by the supervisor, and no repeated errors in controls. A signature sheet alone doesn't prove effectiveness.

What's the difference between an internal audit and an IFS or BRCGS audit?

An internal audit is carried out by the company itself to check its system works; a certification audit is carried out by an accredited external body against the standard. If the internal audit mirrors the external method, including questions on the floor, it becomes the best possible preparation.