(a) Prior to accrediting a third-party certification body under this subpart, a recognized accreditation body must perform, at a minimum, the following:

(1) In the case of a foreign government or an agency of a foreign government, such reviews and audits of the government's or agency's food safety programs, systems, and standards as are necessary to determine that it meets the eligibility requirements of § 1.640(b).

(2) In the case of a foreign cooperative or any other third-party seeking accreditation as a third-party certification body, such reviews and audits of the training and qualifications of agents conducting audits for such cooperative or other third party (or in the case of a third-party certification body that is an individual, such individual) and such reviews of internal systems and any other investigation of the cooperative or other third party necessary to determine that it meets the eligibility requirements of § 1.640(c).

(3) In conducting a review and audit under paragraph (a)(1) or (2) of this section, an observation of a representative sample of onsite audits examining compliance with the applicable food safety requirements of the FD&C Act and FDA regulations as conducted by the third-party certification body or its agents (or, in the case of a third-party certification body that is an individual, such individual).

(b) A recognized accreditation body must require a third-party certification body, as a condition of accreditation under this subpart, to comply with the reports and notification requirements of §§ 1.652 and 1.656 and to agree to submit to FDA, electronically and in English, any food or facility certifications it issues for purposes of sections 801(q) or 806 of the FD&C Act.

(c) A recognized accreditation body must maintain records on any denial of accreditation (in whole or in part) and on any withdrawal, suspension, or reduction in scope of accreditation of a third-party certification body under this subpart. The records must include the name and contact information for the third-party certification body; the date of the action; the scope of accreditation denied, withdrawn, suspended, or reduced; and the basis for such action.

(d) A recognized accreditation body must notify any third-party certification body of an adverse decision associated with its accreditation under this subpart, including denial of accreditation or the withdrawal, suspension, or reduction in the scope of its accreditation. The recognized accreditation body must establish and implement written procedures for receiving and addressing appeals from any third-party certification body challenging such an adverse decision and for investigating and deciding on appeals in a fair and meaningful manner. The appeals procedures must provide similar protections to those offered by FDA under §§ 1.692 and 1.693, and include requirements to:

(1) Make the appeals procedures publicly available;

(2) Use competent persons, who may or may not be external to the recognized accreditation body, who are free from bias or prejudice and have not participated in the accreditation decision or be subordinate to a person who has participated in the accreditation decision to investigate and decide appeals;

(3) Advise third-party certification bodies of the final decisions on their appeals; and

(4) Maintain records under § 1.625 of appeals, final decisions on appeals, and the bases for such decisions.

(a) A recognized accreditation body must annually conduct a comprehensive assessment of the performance of each third-party certification body it accredited under this subpart by reviewing the accredited third-party certification body's self-assessments (including information on compliance with the conflict of interest requirements of §§ 1.643 and 1.657); its regulatory audit reports and notifications submitted to FDA under § 1.656; and any other information reasonably available to the recognized accreditation body regarding the compliance history of eligible entities the accredited third-party certification body certified under this subpart; or that is otherwise relevant to a determination whether the accredited third-party certification body is in compliance with this subpart.

(b) No later than 1 year after the initial date of accreditation of the third-party certification body and every 2 years thereafter for duration of its accreditation under this subpart, a recognized accreditation body must conduct onsite observations of a representative sample of regulatory audits performed by the third-party certification body (or its audit agents) (or, in the case of a third-party certification body that is an individual, such individual) accredited under this subpart and must visit the accredited third-party certification body's headquarters (or other location that manages audit agents conducting food safety audits under this subpart, if different than its headquarters). The recognized accreditation body will consider the results of such observations and visits in the annual assessment of the accredited third-party certification body required by paragraph (a) of this section.

(a) A recognized accreditation body must annually, and as required under § 1.664(g), conduct a self-assessment that includes evaluation of compliance with this subpart, including:

(1) The performance of its officers, employees, or other agents involved in accreditation activities and the degree of consistency in conducting accreditation activities;

(2) The compliance of the recognized accreditation body and its officers, employees, and other agents involved in accreditation activities, with the conflict of interest requirements of § 1.624; and

(3) If requested by FDA, any other aspects of its performance relevant to a determination whether the recognized accreditation body is in compliance with this subpart.

(b) As a means to evaluate the recognized accreditation body's performance, the self-assessment must include onsite observation of regulatory audits of a representative sample of third-party certification bodies it accredited under this subpart. In meeting this requirement, the recognized accreditation body may use the results of onsite observations performed under § 1.621(b).

(c) Based on the evaluations conducted under paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section, the recognized accreditation body must:

(1) Identify any area(s) where deficiencies exist;

(2) Quickly implement corrective action(s) that effectively address those deficiencies; and

(3) Establish and maintain records of any such corrective action(s) under § 1.625.

(d) The recognized accreditation body must prepare, and as required by § 1.623(b) submit, a written report of the results of its self-assessment that includes the following elements. Documentation of conformance to ISO/IEC 17011:2004 may be used, supplemented as necessary, in meeting the requirements of this paragraph.

(1) A description of any corrective actions taken under paragraph (c) of this section;

(2) A statement disclosing the extent to which the recognized accreditation body, and its officers, employees, and other agents involved in accreditation activities, complied with the conflict of interest requirements in § 1.624; and

(3) A statement attesting to the extent to which the recognized accreditation body complied with applicable requirements of this subpart.

(a) Reporting results of assessments of accredited third-party certification body performance. A recognized accreditation body must submit to FDA electronically, in English, a report of the results of any assessment conducted under § 1.621, no later than 45 days after completing such assessment. The report must include an up-to-date list of any audit agents used by the accredited third-party certification body to conduct food safety audits under this subpart.

(b) Reporting results of recognized accreditation body self-assessments. A recognized accreditation body must submit to FDA electronically, in English:

(1) A report of the results of an annual self-assessment required under § 1.622, no later than 45 days after completing such self-assessment; and

(2) For a recognized accreditation body subject to § 1.664(g)(1), a report of such self-assessment to FDA within 60 days of the third-party certification body's withdrawal. A recognized accreditation body may use a report prepared for conformance to ISO/IEC 17011:2004, supplemented as necessary, in meeting the requirements this section.

(c) Immediate notification to FDA. A recognized accreditation body must notify FDA electronically, in English, immediately upon:

(1) Granting (including expanding the scope of) accreditation to a third-party certification body under this subpart, and include:

(i) The name, address, telephone number, and email address of the accredited third-party certification body;

(ii) The name of one or more officers of the accredited third-party certification body;

(iii) A list of the accredited third-party certification body's audit agents; and

(iv) The scope of accreditation, the date on which it was granted, and its expiration date.

(2) Withdrawing, suspending, or reducing the scope of an accreditation under this subpart, and include:

(i) The basis for such action; and

(ii) Any additional changes to accreditation information previously submitted to FDA under paragraph (c)(1) of this section.

(3) Determining that a third-party certification body it accredited failed to comply with § 1.653 in issuing a food or facility certification under this subpart, and include:

(i) The basis for such determination; and

(ii) Any changes to accreditation information previously submitted to FDA under paragraph (c)(1) of this section.

(d) Other notification to FDA. A recognized accreditation body must notify FDA electronically, in English, within 30 days after:

(1) Denying accreditation (in whole or in part) under this subpart and include:

(i) The name, address, telephone number, and email address of the third-party certification body;

(ii) The name of one or more officers of the third-party certification body;

(iii) The scope of accreditation requested; and

(iv) The scope and basis for such denial.

(2) Making any significant change that would affect the manner in which it complies with the applicable requirements of this subpart and include:

(i) A description of the change; and

(ii) An explanation for the purpose of the change.

(a) A recognized accreditation body must implement a written program to protect against conflicts of interest between the recognized accreditation body (and its officers, employees, and other agents involved in accreditation activities) and any third-party certification body (and its officers, employees, and other agents involved in auditing and certification activities) seeking accreditation from, or accredited by, such recognized accreditation body, including the following:

(1) Ensuring that the recognized accreditation body (and its officers, employees, or other agents involved in accreditation activities) does not own or have a financial interest in, manage, or otherwise control the third-party certification body (or any affiliate, parent, or subsidiary); and

(2) Prohibiting officers, employees, or other agents involved in accreditation activities of the recognized accreditation body from accepting any money, gift, gratuity, or item of value from the third-party certification body.

(3) The items specified in paragraph (a)(2) of this section do not include:

(i) Money representing payment of fees for accreditation services and reimbursement of direct costs associated with an onsite assessment of the third-party certification body; or

(ii) Lunch of de minimis value provided during the course of an assessment and on the premises where the assessment is conducted, if necessary to facilitate the efficient conduct of the assessment.

(b) A recognized accreditation body may accept the payment of fees for accreditation services and the reimbursement of direct costs associated with assessment of a certification body only after the date on which the report of such assessment was completed or the date of which the accreditation was issued, whichever comes later. Such payment is not considered a conflict of interest for purposes of paragraph (a) of this section.

(c) The financial interests of the spouses and children younger than 18 years of age of a recognized accreditation body's officers, employees, and other agents involved in accreditation activities will be considered the financial interests of such officers, employees, and other agents involved in accreditation activities.

(d) A recognized accreditation body must maintain on its Web site an up-to-date list of the third-party certification bodies it accredited under this subpart and must identify the duration and scope of each accreditation and the date(s) on which the accredited third-party certification body paid any fee or reimbursement associated with such accreditation. If the accreditation of a certification body is suspended, withdrawn, or reduced in scope, this list must also include the date of suspension, withdrawal, or reduction in scope and maintain that information for the duration of accreditation or until the suspension is lifted, the certification body is reaccredited, or the scope of accreditation is reinstated, whichever comes first.

(a) An accreditation body that has been recognized must maintain electronically for 5 years records created while it is recognized (including documents and data) demonstrating its compliance with this subpart, including records relating to:

(1) Applications for accreditation and renewal of accreditation under § 1.660;

(2) Decisions to grant, deny, suspend, withdraw, or expand or reduce the scope of an accreditation;

(3) Challenges to adverse accreditation decisions under § 1.620(c);

(4) Its monitoring of accredited third-party certification bodies under § 1.621;

(5) Self-assessments and corrective actions under § 1.622;

(6) Regulatory audit reports, including any supporting information, that an accredited third-party certification body may have submitted;

(7) Any reports or notifications to FDA under § 1.623, including any supporting information; and

(8) Records of fee payments and reimbursement of direct costs.

(b) An accreditation body that has been recognized must make records required by paragraph (a) of this section available for inspection and copying promptly upon written request of an authorized FDA officer or employee at the place of business of the accreditation body or at a reasonably accessible location. If the records required by paragraph (a) of this section are requested by FDA electronically, the records must be submitted to FDA electronically not later than 10 business days after the date of the request. Additionally, if the requested records are maintained in a language other than English, the accreditation body must electronically submit an English translation within a reasonable time.

(c) An accreditation body that has been recognized must not prevent or interfere with FDA's access to its accredited third-party certification bodies and the accredited third-party certification body records required by § 1.658.