ADM, a global leader in human and animal nutrition, today announced that its North America Microbiology Lab, located at the ADM Specialty Manufacturing Facility in Decatur, Ill., has received ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accreditation by the ANSI National Accreditation Board.
The ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accreditation is an internationally recognized standard that has been developed through technical committees of leading experts and stakeholders from around the world. Knowledge and best practices have been incorporated into the standard with the objective of promoting confidence in the operation of laboratories.
The accreditation confirms that ADM’s Microbiology Laboratory will now be able to offer laboratory testing services that are accepted globally. The accreditation process involved a thorough evaluation of the lab’s testing procedures, equipment, and personnel by a Certified Accreditation Body. The lab demonstrated its compliance with the strict requirements of ISO/IEC 17025, which ensures that the tests are conducted with accuracy, reliability and consistency.
Regulators, such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, view an ISO accreditation as a critical element for ensuring the integrity of human and animal food testing. The ISO 17025:2017 accreditation is also the recommended laboratory testing standard for the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI), whose food safety programs have specific requirements for testing of ingredients or finished products to confirm manufacturers meet key food safety criteria.
“Obtaining this accreditation was an incredible team effort led by the ADM North American Microbiology team as well as support from ADM’s Human Nutrition business,” said Lee Perry, vice president, Quality and Food Safety at ADM. “The laboratory directly aligns with ADM’s mission and vision to drive productivity and collaboration, accelerate innovation and demonstrates our commitment to growing our in-house testing capabilities to drive analytical performance.”
ADM’s Microbiology Laboratory is responsible for testing finished product from North America for lot release to the market. The facility provides testing services to more than 26 ADM manufacturing facilities located throughout North America. It features state-of-the-art technology providing access to the latest lab and testing innovation as well as the ability to process an exponentially higher volume of tests. The lab allows ADM to conduct advanced testing in-house such as kill-step validations for processing plants, including automation applications. The facility also includes a laboratory information management system that allows faster reporting to ADM clients.
