An FDA inspection checks that you comply with the law and can have regulatory consequences. A certification audit is one you arrange with a certification body to check that you meet a voluntary standard such as SQF or BRCGS; a critical nonconformity, a failing score or not closing nonconformities on time can cost you the certificate. Even so, not every audit is announced: SQF requires an unannounced audit once every three years.
Official sources
Sources verified on November 7, 2026.
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