| Supplier legal identity |
Supplier must be legally registered and authorized to produce, store, and export processed seafood. |
Business registration, food-manufacturing license, export registration, site address, ownership details. |
Cross-check documents with the issuing authority and confirm that the production address matches the audit certificate. |
Before approval and annually |
High |
| Food-safety management system |
A documented HACCP-based system should cover receiving, ingredient handling, forming, cooking, freezing, storage, and dispatch. |
HACCP plan, hazard analysis, critical limits, corrective-action records, internal-audit reports, certification scope. |
Check certificate validity, scope, audit status, nonconformities, and whether fishballs are included in the certified activities. |
Before approval; certificate review annually |
High |
| Applicable destination regulations |
Product, ingredients, labeling, contaminants, additives, and microbiological controls must match the importing market. |
Destination-market regulatory checklist, ingredient specifications, label artwork, additive declarations, import permits where applicable. |
Use the latest official regulations for the destination country; obtain written regulatory review for complex formulations. |
At product development and whenever regulations change |
High |
| Raw-material species and origin |
Species, catch or farm origin, production method, and country of origin must be declared accurately and remain traceable. |
Approved species list, raw-material declarations, catch or farm records, lot codes, chain-of-custody documents. |
Compare supplier declarations with purchase records, labels, and periodic species-authenticity testing. |
Every lot document review; laboratory testing quarterly or risk-based |
Medium–High |
| Allergen and formulation control |
Fish, shellfish, egg, wheat, soy, milk, and other relevant allergens must be correctly declared and protected from cross-contact. |
Full ingredient specification, allergen matrix, supplier declarations, change-control procedure, cleaning validation. |
Review the formulation against the finished label and verify allergen controls during an on-site or remote audit. |
Every formulation change and at least annually |
High |
| Thermal processing |
Cooking must achieve the validated microbial reduction required by the product hazard analysis and local regulations. |
Validated cooking schedule, time–temperature records, calibration certificates, deviation and corrective-action logs. |
Review validation studies and verify actual cold-spot temperatures using calibrated instruments during an audit. |
Every production batch record; validation after process changes |
High |
| Freezing and cold-chain control |
Maintain the product at or below −18°C after freezing, unless the destination regulation or validated specification is stricter. |
Freezer records, loading procedures, temperature-mapping report, data-logger records, transport-temperature logs. |
Review continuous temperature data and inspect product temperature, packaging condition, and evidence of thaw–refreeze events. |
Every shipment; continuous monitoring preferred |
High |
| Microbiological safety |
Testing must follow the destination market and the product risk assessment; frozen storage does not eliminate pathogens. |
Recent accredited laboratory reports for relevant pathogens, hygiene indicators, sampling plan, and corrective actions. |
Confirm laboratory accreditation, sampling method, lot identity, test date, and results against the applicable legal limits. |
Each production lot initially; risk-based reduced frequency after approval |
High |
| Chemical and contaminant controls |
Controls should address heavy metals, veterinary-drug residues where relevant, environmental contaminants, additives, and cleaning chemicals. |
Supplier approval records, risk-based laboratory results, ingredient certificates, contaminant-control plan. |
Set testing frequency according to species, fishing area, farming method, and destination-market legal requirements. |
At least annually and whenever origin or formulation changes |
Medium–High |
| Foreign-material prevention |
The facility should control metal, hard plastic, glass, bone, and other physical hazards through preventive measures. |
Equipment inspection records, metal-detector verification, sieve or filter controls, glass-and-brittle-plastic register. |
Observe production controls and confirm detector challenge tests use documented test pieces and defined acceptance criteria. |
Each shift or as defined by the validated HACCP plan |
Medium–High |
| Traceability and recall readiness |
The supplier should link finished-product lots to raw materials, processing records, packaging, storage, and shipment destinations. |
One-step-back and one-step-forward records, lot-code procedure, mock-recall report, complaint and recall history. |
Run a traceability exercise and require retrieval of relevant records within the buyer’s agreed response time. |
At approval and at least annually |
High |
| Packaging and labeling |
Packaging must be food-contact compliant, intact at delivery, and labeled with product name, net quantity, lot code, dates, storage conditions, origin, and allergens as required. |
Packaging specification, food-contact declaration, label proof, artwork approval, seal-integrity checks. |
Compare approved artwork with shipped cartons and inspect sealing, print quality, palletization, and case markings. |
Every shipment and whenever artwork changes |
Medium |
| Product quality specifications |
Agree measurable limits for size, weight, count, appearance, texture, odor, cooking yield, broken pieces, and glaze or ice content. |
Signed product specification, inspection plan, retained samples, certificate of analysis where applicable. |
Conduct pre-shipment or arrival inspection using statistically defined sampling and compare against approved reference samples. |
First three shipments, then risk-based |
Medium |
| Supplier capacity and continuity |
Supplier should demonstrate stable capacity, backup utilities, approved alternate materials, maintenance planning, and contingency logistics. |
Capacity statement, production calendar, business-continuity plan, backup-freezer arrangements, maintenance records. |
Compare forecasted demand with validated monthly capacity and review performance during peak-season planning. |
Before contract and every six months |
Medium |
| Delivery reliability |
Set measurable targets for on-time shipment, documentation accuracy, temperature compliance, claims, and response time. |
Shipment history, corrective-action records, logistics-provider performance data, customer references without undisclosed branding. |
Score each shipment and review trends using objective key performance indicators. |
Every shipment; formal review quarterly |
Medium |
| Supplier approval score |
Approve only suppliers meeting all critical food-safety requirements and achieving a documented weighted score of at least 80/100. |
Completed supplier questionnaire, audit score, laboratory review, corrective-action closure, commercial assessment. |
Use a weighted model: food safety 35%, regulatory compliance 25%, traceability 15%, quality 15%, reliability 10%. |
Initial approval and annual re-approval |
High |
