Oct 6, 2026Certifications & Compliance
ISO 22000 vs HACCP: What Tea Buyers Should Check on Each Certificate
ISO 22000 vs HACCP for tea buyers: five fields to check on any certificate, with ours as the worked example.
ISO 22000 and HACCP are not rivals: ISO 22000:2018 is a full food safety management system built on HACCP principles, while a HACCP certificate attests to the hazard-analysis system itself. Whichever certificate a tea supplier shows you, check the same five fields: certificate number, issuing body, scope, validity window and verifiability. Our own certificate, used as the worked example below, reads ISO 22000:2018, certificate 001FSMS2400758, issued by CQC, valid from October 11, 2024 to October 10, 2027.
What Each Certificate Actually Covers
HACCP is the method: analyze hazards, set critical control points, monitor, verify. ISO 22000 wraps that method into a management system with prerequisite programs, communication and continual improvement, which is why our certificate is explicitly HACCP-based. Many tea factories hold both, and our own brochure notes HACCP system certification alongside ISO 22000. For a buyer the practical difference is smaller than the marketing difference: what protects your order is not the logo, it is whether the scope matches what you actually purchase.
Three Reading Mistakes That Cost Importers
First, reading the logo instead of the scope: an ISO 22000 certificate for flavored tea production does not automatically describe an RTD line or a packing station for herbal blends. Second, treating the expiry date as a formality: a certificate valid until October 2027 covers programs signed today, but a multi-year supply agreement should carry a renewal clause. Third, accepting screenshots: ask for the copy with the number and issuer, then verify through the issuer, so the document chain ends at a source you trust rather than at an image.
Fields 1 and 2: Certificate Number and Issuing Body
A certificate without a number is a wall decoration. The number makes it traceable, and the issuing body makes it checkable. Ours carries number 001FSMS2400758 and was issued by CQC, the China Quality Certification Centre, whose issuance you can verify through CQC channels. When a supplier presents a certificate from an issuer you have never heard of, ask for the verification path before the audit visit, not after.
Field 3: Scope, the Field Buyers Skip
Scope decides whether the certificate covers your product at all. Ours reads "production of flavored tea, packaging of tea and herbal tea products". If you buy flavored tea or packed tea, you are inside it; if your product falls outside that wording, no logo on the page protects you. Match the scope to your product category line by line, especially for formats such as RTD liquids, which may sit under different certified activities than dry leaf.
Fields 4 and 5: Validity Window and Verifiability
Certificates expire quietly. Ours runs from October 11, 2024 to October 10, 2027, so a program starting in 2027 should ask about renewal status rather than assume continuity. Verifiability is the last field: ask where the issuer publishes verification and request the certificate copy during inquiry. A supplier comfortable with all five fields is telling you something no single audit day reveals.
Where FDA Registration Fits, and Where It Does Not
US-bound buyers are sometimes shown an FDA registration number as if it were an approval. It is not: FDA food facility registration is a notification that a facility is registered, not a judgment on any product. Ours is registration no. 10319209992, DUNS 450984434, valid until December 31, 2026. We also hold China's export food producer registration, the license layer that allows the factory to ship food out of China in the first place.
Request the Certification Pack
Ask for the full pack, certificates with scopes and validity, registration numbers and verification channels, through the contact form on our website or on WhatsApp at +86 130 7163 2772. Our export team replies to every inquiry with copies and the verification path for each document.
Sources and Verification
ISO 22000:2018 food safety management system, HACCP-based, certificate no. 001FSMS2400758, issued by CQC, certified since October 11, 2024, valid until October 10, 2027; scope: production of flavored tea, packaging of tea and herbal tea products. HACCP system certification noted in company brochure alongside ISO 22000.
US FDA food facility registration no. 10319209992, DUNS 450984434, valid until December 31, 2026; facility registration is not product approval. Export food producer registration (China) obtained. Certificate copies are shared during inquiry; no third-party client names or pricing are disclosed.