Pennsylvania, March 17, 2021: The Global Retail and Manufacturer Alliance (GRMA) announced today the successful completion of the ANSI National Accreditation Board (ANAB) pilot accreditation program. This pilot, which concluded at the end of February, focused on providing accreditation to third-party certification bodies (CBs) to the GRMA Master Certification Program Document.

The scope(s) and standards of this accreditation extend to the following health and wellness categories:

  • Dietary Supplements – NSF/ANSI 455-2-2018 Good Manufacturing Practices for Dietary Supplements
  • Cosmetics / Personal Care Products – NSF/ANSI 455-3-2018 Good Manufacturing Practices for Cosmetics
  • Over-the-Counter Drugs – NSF/ANSI 455-4-2018 Good Manufacturing Practices Over-the-Counter Drugs

Each of the participating CBs, NSF International, Perry Johnson Registrars Food Safety Inc., and UL-Verification Services Inc., received accreditation to the GRMA Certification Program – Version 1 across all three scopes and GMP standards.

GRMA extends a special thank you to ANAB, the manufacturers, and CBs who participated in this pilot process. “This is an exciting achievement for each of our certification bodies and we should applaud each of them for their commitment to the GRMA’s mission,” shares Allyn Shultis, GRMA Executive Director.  Lane Hallenbeck, Executive Director of ANAB, stated “This effort represents an important step forward in protecting consumer health and safety, while also improving efficiencies and risk management programs for retailers and manufacturers alike.”

Having a CB accredited by ANAB is a substantial achievement and assures manufacturers, retailers, and the public that the CB:

  • Operates in accordance with internationally accepted criteria
  • Maintains an unbiased adherence to rigorous auditing standards
  • Is competent to perform the necessary evaluations

Retailers and manufacturers are also applauding the completion of this pilot. “As a strong supporter of the GRMA, Wegmans is happy to see the certifiers achieve ANAB accreditation to the GRMA GMP program because it further strengthens and provides confidence in the GRMA,” says Betsy Crater, Wegmans Non-Food Quality Assurance Manager and GRMA Board Secretary. “The new GMP program will continue to help the industry by raising the bar on quality for consumers while reducing the costs of multiple retailer-specific audits.”

Mike Finamore, CEO Gemini Pharmaceuticals and GRMA Board Chairman, shares, “Compliance is not competitive.  ANAB accreditation to the GRMA GMP Audit Scheme is a critical step needed in raising the quality bar throughout our industry. The GRMA’s audit program with the published, public ANSI standards, enables the industry to harmonize to a common set of requirements and end audit fatigue and confusion from private audit programs.”

Lane Hollenbeck added, “The ANSI-approved Good Manufacturing Practices standards reflect quality, safety, and transparency. And by having a single standard for each product category for use by all certification bodies, industry can use the certification to meet multiple customer and retailer needs.”

To learn more about the three approved CBs, visit https://grmalliance.org/approved-certification-bodies-cbs/. Non-members can learn more about GRMA, including how to become a member, at https://grmalliance.org/membership/. 

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About GRMA: The Global Retail and Manufacturer Alliance (GRMA) is a member-based non-profit organization made up of retailers, manufacturers, trade associations, certification bodies, and other key stakeholders. They are committed to advancing global quality and safety standards. They focus on several non-food industries, including dietary supplements, over-the-counter drug products, and cosmetics/personal care products. To learn more, visit https://grmalliance.org/ or contact: Allyn Shultis, (610) 945-1797, generalinquiries@grmalliance.org.

About ANAB
The ANSI National Accreditation Board (ANAB) is the largest multi-disciplinary ISO/IEC 17011 accreditation body in North America, with comprehensive signatory status across the multilateral recognition arrangements of the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) and International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC). The ANAB accreditation portfolio includes management systems certification bodies, calibration and testing labs, product certification bodies, personnel credentialing organizations, forensic test and calibration service providers, inspection bodies, police crime units, greenhouse gas validation and verification bodies, reference material producers, and proficiency test providers.

ANAB is a wholly owned subsidiary of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), a private, not-for-profit organization dedicated to supporting the U.S. voluntary standards and conformity assessment system and strengthening its impact, both domestically and internationally.

 

About ANSI
The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) is a private non-profit organization whose mission is to enhance both the global competitiveness of U.S. business and the U.S. quality of life by promoting, facilitating, and safeguarding the integrity of the voluntary standardization and conformity assessment systems. Its membership is comprised of businesses, professional societies and trade associations, standards developers, government agencies, and consumer and labor organizations.

 

The Institute represents and serves the diverse interests of more than 270,000 companies and organizations and 30 million professionals worldwide. ANSI is the official U.S. representative to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and, via the U.S. National Committee, the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). For more information, visit www.ansi.org

 

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