Early Warning System

What is the Early Warning System?

Feed safety is still in the hands of humans. Things can go wrong. In that case, the Early Warning System (EWS) forms an important safety net that’s helps limit the extent of, or mitigate a (potential) problem at an early stage with the help of adequate measures.

For GMP+ certified companies, it is sometimes mandatory to notify if contaminated feed is found. The conditions for this are described in the Feed Safety Management Requirements. Notifications are evaluated by GMP+ International and the GMP+ Community is informed if necessary.

Why an Early Warning System?

The purpose of EWS is to notify irregularities regarding feed safety and to allow for a fast response and fast communication about (new) hazards and risks throughout the complete feed production chain, with the purpose of preventing or limiting the harmful consequences for humans, animals and the environment.

When do I submit an EWS notification?

All observations and signals that feed is unsafe or forms a risk for subsequent links in the feed or food chain, whether or not based on legal and / or GMP+ limits must be notified*.

Use the decision tree to assess whether there is an imminent situation. It is only mandatory to notify if it concerns products that fall within the scope of the GMP+ certificate.

It is mandatory to notify to GMP+ International within 12 hours after discovery of the contamination or deviation if:

1. The relevant product has already been delivered and is not completely blocked
2. If the traceability of the product is not clear and complete

This period of 12 hours are consecutive hours and take effect at the moment you learn of the contamination. This can, for instance, be when you receive the analysis certificate or a message from the laboratory that carried out the analysis or from your supplier.

If the situation appears to be under control, it is possible, with correct arguments, to deviate from the obligation to report within 12 hours.

When you carry out a confirmation analyses and it turns out there is no contamination, it is no longer needed to send in an EWS notification.

The measurement uncertainty cannot be considered, the actual result is leading.

* An exemption applies to salmonella that can be treated to demonstrably eliminate the salmonella bacteria.

To whom do I have to report an EWS?

In addition to notifying to GMP+ International, it is of course necessary to inform potentially affected customers or suppliers. Naturally, this also applies if you, as a service provider, discover a problem in feed, you must then inform the owner of the product in question.

It is the company’s responsibility to notify the incident to the certification body, and if legally required to the competent authority of the country in which the company is located.

How do I submit an EWS notification?

You can notify risks and (imminent) calamities in feed via the EWS notification form. It is also possible to forward the form of your competent authority to ews@gmpplus.org. 

At the time of the notifying it may be not possible to submit or complete all requested information. Please, state this clearly in the notification and ensure that as soon as the information is available it is shared with GMP+ International. The more information GMP+ International receives, the better it can be estimated whether the situation is under control or not.

In addition to notifying via the form, it is possible to contact GMP+ International via

GMP+ International
Tel.   + 31 (0)70 307 41 20 (during business hours in the Netherlands)
Mob. + 31 (0)6 46 07 60 36
Mail: ews@gmpplus.org

What happens after a notification is submitted?

After submission, GMP+ International makes an initial estimate. GMP+ International will contact you to discuss whether follow-up actions are needed or to indicate that a case can be closed. All information is treated confidentially. When the situation does not seem to be under control, GMP+ International publishes an EWS warning to inform companies about this, in consultation with the reporter.

In addition to notifying, you must also retrieve the origin and destination of unsafe batches, block them or have them blocked, inform the suppliers and customers involved, identify the cause of contamination and take corrective measures.

EWS notifications form an essential source of information for GMP+ International to emphasize potential risks in its communication and it can lead to improvements of the GMP+ FSA module (the Aflatoxin B1 protocol is an example of this), Feed Support Products (for instance quick scans and adjustment of risk assessments), the certification and conformity requirements, risk communication and other activities.

Where to find EWS warnings?

We communicate an EWS warning via a GMP+ Alert mailing. The actual EWS warning can be found on the GMP+ Portal and is only visible for GMP+ certified companies and Certification Bodies.

What does an EWS warning contain?

The warning identifies the product concerned, the undesirable substance(s) and detected value(s), as well as the country of origin. Details of the relevant company are only published in very exceptional situations.

Even when a situation is under control, GMP+ International can still decide to publish the warning. This allows certified companies to learn from such situations. To prevent similar cases in the future.

Privacy and data sharing  

GMP+ International does not share company data with third parties except if:

1. Companies, covered by a quality assurance system other than the GMP+ FSA module, are involved in an incident and GMP+ International has an interchangeability agreement with that system and that system has a similar privacy policy, then GMP+ International will provide relevant information with regard to the incident communicate with the affected system.
2. A violation of mandatory requirements is observed on the basis of audits or EWS notifications, after which GMP+ International has the right (see GMP + A1, § 8.2.6 / F 0.1 § 2.4) to report these findings to the relevant certification body, as well as to the competent authority.

Any questions?

If you have any questions please contact the GMP+ Helpdesk.  Sign up for our newsletter, to stay informed of the latest news.