About this course
About this course
Packaging that comes into contact with food is regulated to a standard just as exacting as the food itself. This two-day virtual programme teaches site teams how to interpret and evidence every clause of the BRCGS Global Standard for Packaging Materials Issue 7 (V7), the benchmark most retailers specify for approved packaging suppliers.
Who should attend
The course suits technical managers, quality managers, compliance leads and production supervisors working in rigid plastic, flexible film, paper and board, metal, glass or closure manufacturing. Staff preparing a site for initial certification or for a planned upgrade from Issue 6 find the programme particularly valuable. The programme is also useful for brand-owner technical staff auditing packaging suppliers, and for contract manufacturers supplying multiple food customers with different hygiene category expectations.
What the programme covers
Sessions work systematically through the Standard: senior management commitment, the hazard and risk management system, product safety and quality management, site standards, contamination control, personnel and, critically, the hygiene category requirements that determine the specific controls applicable to each site. Time is given to the specifics of product safety culture and the evidence retailers expect to see for key interface clauses with the BRCGS Food Safety Standard. The programme addresses the particular evidence challenges of packaging sites serving both food-contact and non-food-contact applications, and covers how to manage customer-specific additional requirements without duplicating core compliance work.
Assessment and certification
A written exam at the end of day two confirms competence. On passing, delegates receive the official BRCGS Certificate of Achievement, widely recognised across the packaging supply chain and referenced in most retailer technical specifications.
Course format and delivery
The programme runs over two consecutive days in a live virtual format. Sessions combine clause-level teaching with worked examples from real packaging audits, small-group discussion and Q and A with the trainer. Delegates receive supporting materials and hygiene category guidance documents for reference after the programme.
Why this matters
Packaging sites face a distinctive compliance challenge: the same line often produces material for multiple food customers with different hygiene category expectations, and technical specification is typically led by customers rather than by the site. A team grounded in the Standard at clause level handles customer audits, due-diligence visits and certification body surveillance with far less friction. Technical staff often take this course alongside the BRCGS HACCP programme and the HARA course for broader hazard management training. For those leading audit work inside packaging operations, the BRCGS Internal Auditor qualification is often the next step, and senior technical staff progress into the Packaging Auditor qualification available from the same training provider.
See the complete BRCGS courses and training catalogue for related programmes, or read what BRCGS stands for for background on the Global Standards framework.
