SQF Edition 10 Playbook
Free 6-part webinar series for SQF-certified sites. Practical guidance on audit protocol, food safety culture, corrective actions, and more.
Free 6-part webinar series for SQF-certified sites. Practical guidance on audit protocol, food safety culture, corrective actions, and more.
SQF Edition 10 was released in March 2026, with weighted core clauses, a formal food safety culture requirement, and a new change management clause. SQFI expects audits to begin under the new Code on or after January 2, 2027, pending completion of the GFSI benchmarking process — so if your next audit falls after that date, it will likely be conducted against Edition 10.
Plenty of content out there explains what changed. This series is built for a narrower, harder question: what does that mean for your site, your next audit, and the fifteen minutes you'll spend defending a corrective action to an auditor who's already read the Code. It skips the basics and gets straight to what experienced SQF practitioners and QA leads are actually being asked to do differently.
60 minutes, consistent hosts, room for your questions.
30 min: Technical, practical content on one Edition 10 topic
15 min: Discussion between QIMA's hosts and a guest expert
15 min: Live audience questions
Hosted by Alex Hanley and Rodolfo Tamez, with a guest expert.
Wed, Oct. 21, 2026. Guest: Lina Bush, Business Development Manager; Rodolfo Tamez, Technical Director; and Alex Hanley. SQF is raising the bar on how it certifies sites, and this session opens the series by reviewing the certification protocol itself, so you understand the rules of engagement before we get into the details of what's changing and when it will actually make a difference for your site.
Questions this session answers:
Why is SQF taking a stronger approach across the program, and what's driving it?
What are Core Clauses, and how are they different from Mandatory Clauses?
What counts as a repeat issue, and when does a minor non-conformance become a major?
Is it true certification gets suspended if non-conformances aren't closed within 30 days?
Wed, Nov. 18, 2026. Two of the biggest program changes in Edition 10, unpacked together, because they're connected in practice even though they show up as separate clauses. We translate the new requirements into what your team actually needs to do differently before launch.
Questions this session answers:
What is change management, and how does it fit inside an existing SQF system?
What's actually changed with food safety culture requirements, and what stays the same?
How do change management and food safety culture connect in day-to-day practice?
What should practitioners and food safety teams have in place before launch?
Wed, Dec. 9, 2026. Closing non-conformances on time is still the single biggest pain point in the certification process. The standard itself hasn't changed, but the expectation has, and now there are real consequences for getting it wrong. This session draws a clear, practical line between correction, corrective action, and root cause analysis.
Questions this session answers:
What actually separates a correction from a corrective action?
What does root cause analysis need to show to hold up under Edition 10?
What changed in the consequences for not closing non-conformances on time?
Wed, Jan. 13, 2027 (TBC) Guest: QIMA auditor (TBC). An open, technically grounded session addressing the questions and concerns sites have as the Edition 10 launch approaches — shaped directly by what came up in sessions 1 through 3.Questions this session answers
Get direct answers to your priority Edition 10 questions
Clarify the areas of uncertainty coming up most often before launch
Learn from the questions other certified sites are asking
Wed, Feb. 10, 2027 Guest: to be confirmed. A practical look at vertical audits as a way to test whether your food safety system is actually working in practice, not just on paper, and to prepare for an Edition 10 audit. Scope will be shaped by the questions and feedback raised across the 2026 sessions.
Questions this session answers:
What does a vertical audit reveal that a standard program review may miss?
How do you follow records through the system to test real execution?
How do you use vertical audit findings to strengthen Edition 10 readiness?
Date to be confirmed. A practical support session focused on what sites are seeing and asking now that Edition 10 is live and upcoming audits are being conducted against it.
Questions this session answers:
Address the early implementation questions and recurring concerns
Clarify how Edition 10 is actually being applied in practice
Identify your immediate priorities before your next audit
Ask your own question: 15 minutes of every session is open floor — bring the scenario your team is actually stuck on.
Hear the auditor's read: Select sessions bring in a QIMA auditor's perspective, not just a policy summary.
One registration, six sessions: Register once for the full series. Miss a live date and the recording is still yours.
Shaped by your peers: Later sessions are built directly from the questions and gaps this series surfaces.
SQF practitioners
Food safety & QA managers
Quality directors & VPs
Corporate quality & compliance leads
One registration covers all six sessions. Can't make a live date? You'll get the recording either way.
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