Internal audit a success: FPA prepares for third-party surveillance by August 2022

Written by Suzettie Alcaide and Mirasol Bacarisas  l  Published: 02 August 2022

QUEZON CITY | July 29, 2022 - To evaluate the conformity and effectiveness of the implementation of the FPA-Quality Management System, the FPA Internal Quality Audit (IQA) team headed by Ms. Suzettie Alcaide, together with the 38 auditors, conducted its planned audit based on their approved audit program from July 13 to 27, 2022 via blended approach. 

The scope of the audit includes the FPA-Quality Management System on issuing licenses, registrations, and permits for fertilizer, pesticide, and other agricultural chemicals covering from July 24, 2021 until July 22, 2022. Audit criteria were based on ISO 9001:2015, ISO/IEC 17025:2017, and ISO 19011:2018 standards, applicable statutory and regulatory requirements, and FPA’s policies, procedures, and guidelines.

The auditors classified their findings as positive, including best practices, an Opportunity for Improvement (OFI), and Non-Conformity (NC). NCs are given to the process owners who fail to follow the standards indicated in the ISO standards.

The IQA team concluded the two-week audit with fifty-one (51) NCs, which is 150% higher than the previous audit findings conducted in 2021. Although there was a notable increase in the number of NCs, the team attributed to the improvement of the audit procedure and longer duration of auditing per process. 

NCs were issued to the process owners through Non-Conformity Corrective Action Report (NCAR) form within 24 hours after the audit. The accomplished NCAR shall be returned to the auditor within five (5) working days upon receipt. The auditor shall verify the immediate corrective action, the root cause analysis, and the implementation of corrective actions based on the agreed date indicated in the NCAR form. 

The team commended the FPA Management and all the process owners for their commitment to continually improving the FPA QMS, demonstrated by actively cooperating with the IQA team during the internal audit. 

Despite the NCs, the FPA Management acknowledged the result of the internal audit and pledged to take necessary actions to address these findings and commit to continual improvement. ###