South African Airways’ catering arm Air Chefs received ISO 22000 food safety certification

JOHANNESBURG, 2015-11-24 — /Travel PR News/ — South African Airways’ (SAA) catering arm, Air Chefs, has received ISO 22000 food safety certification, opening doors for further catering contracts.

The ISO 22000 certification which Air Chefs received, makes it the only airline catering company in Southern Africa to have received this global food safety management system standard at all its food manufacturing plants, giving it traceability for the whole food supply chain, from “farm to fork”.

“We are most pleased about receiving this certification, which is one of the highest stamps of approval a caterer can get – and it sets us apart as an airline caterer when it comes to food safety standards,” says Martin Kemp, Air Chefs Acting CEO.

Loyiso Jiyana, Air Chefs General Manager Commercial and Key Accounts says:  “This gives us the confidence that we can supply large scale catering and that the food we serve is safe and adheres to stringent legislated requirement. ISO 22000 becomes a deal breaker for a caterer like us, who is attracting more clients.

“We can now look after the catering needs of anyone who values standards and would like to offer catering for other companies and institutions such as canteens, schools and healthcare facilities, universities, and prisons. Air Chefs is also ideally placed to give small food suppliers access to a mass market.”

Air Chefs is annually audited by Control Union Inspections, with an extensive audit every three years. The ISO 22000 certification was awarded to Air Chefs at all three of its food manufacturing hubs, Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban, following an audit where the entity was audited for its applications of standards, hygiene, and food safety.

Based on state of the art best practices, ISO 22000 specifies the requirements for a food safety management system that involves interactive communication, system management, and prerequisite programmes. The standard focuses on supply chain assurance, has management system principles embedded, and is aligned with Hazard Analysis of Critical Control Points (HACCP) principles and with Codex Alimentarius  (international food standards, guidelines and codes of practice).

The standard is designed to: Build trust with stakeholders; Identify, manage and mitigate food safety risks; Reduce the possibility of risk to acceptable levels and Protect your brand.

-ends-

Issued by: SAA Group Corporate Affairs 

About Air Chefs
Air Chefs is a wholly-owned subsidiary of South African Airways, with its own board. The company’s main business is producing and supplying food and beverages to airlines.

About South  African Airways:
South African Airways (SAA) is the leading carrier in Africa, serving 56 destinations, in partnership with SA Express, SA Airlink and its low cost carrier, Mango, within South Africa and across the continent, and nine intercontinental routes from its Johannesburg hub. It is a member of the largest international airline network, Star Alliance. SAA’s core business is the provision of passenger airline and cargo transport services together with related services, which are provided through SAA and its wholly owned subsidiaries: SAA Technical; Mango its low cost carrier; and Air Chefs, the catering entity of SAA. SAA is the winner of the ‘Best Airline in Africa’ Award in the regional category for thirteen consecutive years and the winner of ‘Service Excellence Africa’ for three years. Mango and SAA hold the number one and number two successive spots as South Africa’s most on – time airlines.

For media information, please contact:

SAA Spokesperson
Tlali Tlali
Email: TlaliTlali@flysaa.com
Mobile:+27 82 333 3880
Office: +27 11 978 2298
Web: www.flysaa.com