The Regular Inspection activity is performed at the purchase of a commodity, upon request from a WFP Procurement Officer. It involves visit of a designated food inspector to the premises of the food supplier for premises inspection, consignment inspection and withdrawal of sample according to the plan precised in the commodity specifications (as included in the procurement contract) and analysis at a selected laboratory for the production of a Certificate of Analyses (CoA). The CoA is the basis for the final commodity choice decision (approval / rejection).

The Superintendence takes place upon reception of a cargo at the recipient country or warehouse. It is performed upon request from the Logistics Officer by a selected superintendence company.

What is the role of inspection in food safety and quality?

Inspection in relation to food management will involve a detailed examination of all or part of the consignment of produced foods, stored commodities, the methods of handling and transport, the storage building, and the standards of storekeeping and pest control.

Examination of the commodities themselves may or may not include the taking and analysis of samples.

The overall objective of inspection is to provide information as a basis for management action and future planning to ensure that deterioration and loss of stored commodities are kept to a minimum. Food safety, as well as economic reasons, provides strong rationale for inspecting foods.

In WFP's food supply chain there are two distinctive Quality Control (QC) points: