BRC Broker certification: preparing for and achieving BRCGS Agents & Brokers certification.

Tracklab supports these companies from audit preparation through to maintaining certification: scoping the perimeter, requirement-by-requirement gap analysis, structuring the documentation file, preparing teams and mock audit. The platform centralises supplier and product data, automates document collection, tracks deadlines and uses AI (artificial intelligence) to exploit document content. Tracklab is neither a certification body, nor an ERP, nor a regulatory monitoring tool: the audit and the certification decision are the responsibility of an accredited body.

In brief

• The standard : BRCGS Global Standard for Agents and Brokers, Issue 3, with audits conducted against this issue since 1 April 2022.
• Who it is for : brokerage, trading, import-export and distribution of food products, packaging or consumer goods, without a manufacturing site.
• What Tracklab does : centralising supplier and product data, automating document collection, tracking deadlines, structuring evidence and preparing for the audit.
• What Tracklab is not : neither a certification body nor an ERP. The certificate is issued by an accredited body registered with BRCGS.
• The starting point : scoping of the perimeter (certified offices, product types, activities) followed by a gap analysis.

The scope of the BRC Broker standard (BRCGS Agents & Brokers)

The standard underpinning BRC Broker certification is the BRCGS Global Standard for Agents and Brokers, in its Issue 3. It is organised into five chapters of requirements:

1. Senior management commitment : policy, objectives, management review, responsibilities, continual improvement.
2. Hazard and risk assessment : analysis of the risks related to the company's products and activities.
3. Product safety and quality management system : documented procedures, internal audits, specifications, traceability, complaints, corrective actions, incident and withdrawal management.
4. Management of suppliers and outsourced services : approval, monitoring, safety, analyses, legality, labelling, authenticity, product release.
5. Personnel : training and competence.

A key point for a trading company: no requirement relates to a manufacturing facility, since the company has none. For such a company, BRC agents and brokers certification therefore depends on documentary evidence and control of the upstream chain, not on processes.

Which companies fall under BRC Broker

The eligibility criterion is simple: the company buys, sells or facilitates trade in products that it neither manufactures nor processes. Typically concerned are:

• brokers (brokerage firms) and sales agents who connect a manufacturer and a buyer;
• traders and trading companies dealing in raw materials or finished products;
• importers and exporters who buy outside a market to resell in another;
• distributors and purchasing organisations with no processing activity;
• buyers acting on behalf of third parties, who source products on behalf of customers.

The certified entity is an organisation or an office, not a production site. This is what fundamentally distinguishes this scheme from the other BRCGS standards.

BRCGS Agents & Brokers or BRCGS Food: the difference

The two standards share a common logic - safety management, risk control, traceability - but they do not measure the same thing.

A group may hold both: a production subsidiary certified to BRCGS Food and a trading entity certified to Agents & Brokers. A detailed comparison of these two schemes and of how evidence can be pooled between them is covered in our content IFS and BRC for brokers.

Why British and international retailers require it

The BRCGS standard originated as an initiative of the British Retail Consortium, the association of British retailers, to set a common baseline of requirements for their suppliers. The Agents & Brokers scheme meets the same need at another link in the chain: major retailers want assurance on theorigin and compliance of the products they buy, including when they go through an intermediary.

In practice, certification often becomes a listing requirement:

• it is frequently required by British retailers, historically the first to demand it;
• it is spreading among European retailers, importers and international customers;
• it is part of a GFSI recognition (Global Food Safety Initiative) approach, which qualifies the certification programme and determines its acceptance by a given customer.

The right selection criterion remains commercial: which markets are you targeting, and which standards do your customers accept? This decision grid is detailed in which GFSI certification to choose.

Certification scope: offices, product types and exclusions

The scope is declared and validated upstream with your certification body. Three rules are worth knowing before preparing for the audit:

• Offices concerned : certification covers one or more identified offices. The company's other locations may remain outside the scope of the certificate.
• Product types : the scope distinguishes between food, packaging and consumer goods. A company may exclude an entire product type, but not a selection of products within the same type.
• Use of the BRCGS logo : the logo may be used only when the certified scope includes no exclusion of a product type.

The standard is supplemented by position statements (interpretation statements) published by BRCGS, which specify which clauses apply depending on the activities actually carried out. The current version applies to audits conducted from 10 August 2026 : always check it with your certification body before drawing up your preparation plan.

The scope of Tracklab's support

Tracklab works on the preparation, structuring and maintenance of certification. We do not carry out the audit and do not issue certificates.

• Scoping the perimeter : certified offices, product types, activities covered, any exclusions to be validated with the certification body.
• Gap analysis : requirement-by-requirement comparison between the company's situation and the standard, with missing evidence identified.
• Structuring the supplier file : approved supplier list, approval criteria, evaluation evidence, certificates and approvals, with validity checks.
• Automated document collection : requests and reminders to suppliers, centralised receipt, completeness and obsolescence checks.
• Specifications and product data : linking each reference to its specification, its origin and its supporting documents.
• Deadline tracking : certificates, analyses, training, internal audits, with alerts before expiry.
• Team preparation and mock audit : awareness-raising, interview preparation, simulation of the auditor's route.
• Maintenance : change management, updating of evidence, preparation for the renewal audit.

What remains out of scope

To define the service clearly:

• the certification audit and the certification decision, which are the sole responsibility of an accredited body;
• bringing purchasing and product release practices into compliance : deploying the procedures remains internal to your company;
• sales, inventory or invoicing management : Tracklab is not an ERP;
• regulatory monitoring : we structure and exploit your documents, without replacing your own monitoring or your legal obligations.

This service is the "broker" version of our overall BRC certification offer.

How the engagement unfolds, step by step

Each step produces a deliverable that feeds into the next. Durations vary according to your document maturity, the number of suppliers to be documented and the target audit date.

Step 1 - Scoping and qualifying the perimeter

An initial discussion sets the certified offices, product types, activities and any exclusions, as well as the applicable issue of the standard. It results in a scoping note that serves as the reference for the entire engagement.

Step 2 - Gap analysis

The requirements are reviewed one by one: senior management commitment, risk assessment, management system, suppliers and outsourcing, personnel. For each, we record the situation observed, the evidence available and any gap.

Step 3 - Prioritised action plan

Gaps are ranked by criticality and effort: what blocks certification, what weakens the audit, what falls under continuous improvement. Each action is assigned an owner and a deadline.

Step 4 - Building the documentation file

This is where the platform takes over: automated collection of documents from suppliers, completeness and validity checks, indexing, then AI extraction of critical information (certificate number, expiry date, scope covered, analysis results). Each product reference is linked to its specification and its suppliers.

Step 5 - Selecting and coordinating with the certification body

We help you check that the chosen body is registered for the Agents & Brokers scheme and prepare the scope declaration elements. The certification decision and the organisation of the visit remain its responsibility.

Step 6 - Mock audit

A document review and interviews in the format of a real audit test the robustness of the set-up: can an auditor find a piece of evidence within a limited time, is critical information linked to the right reference, are answers to typical questions available?

Step 7 - Certification audit

The audit is conducted by the accredited body. Our role: to provide a complete file and well-prepared contacts so that every requirement can be demonstrated quickly.

Step 8 - Closing gaps and maintenance

The gaps raised are analysed through root cause analysis and then addressed. The grade obtained determines the next step in the cycle:

The certificate is generally issued within 42 calendar days of the first day of the audit, provided that the certification requirements are met. Maintenance then consists of keeping evidence up to date and preparing for the surveillance and then renewal audits.

The deliverables of our support

These deliverables follow the same logic as our module compliance and certifications, applied to the Agents & Brokers scheme.

Documentation requirements specific to BRC Broker

The standard is demanding on evidence, often more so than on the activity itself. Here are the five areas to master as a priority.

Supplier approval and monitoring

Each supplier must be approved according to defined criteria, then monitored over time. In practice, the auditor expects an up-to-date approved supplier list, the approval criteria and evidence (recognised certificate, approval, audit, documented questionnaire, performance history), and a periodic evaluation record. The usual difficulty is not the procedure, but the freshness of the evidence : an expired supplier certificate on a sensitive reference is enough to generate a non-conformity.

Product specifications

Each reference bought or sold must be covered by an up-to-date specification, describing the product, its origin, its composition or characteristics, its storage conditions and its allergens where applicable. A generic specification, not linked to a specific reference, is not sufficient. The point to watch: the version sold must match the documented version.

Upstream-downstream traceability

For a trading company, traceability is documentary : knowing, for a given delivery, which suppliers and which batches are involved, and vice versa. It must be possible to test it on a complete flow, upstream to the source and downstream to the customer. This principle is in line with the "one step back, one step forward" regulatory traceability obligation laid down in Regulation (EC) No 178/2002. An undocumented traceability test, or one limited to a single direction, is regularly raised in audits.

Complaint management

Customer complaints must be recorded, analysed, handled and followed up until the effectiveness of the action has been verified. The standard expects a procedure, a usable register and the ability to demonstrate that recurring feedback feeds into continuous improvement. An incomplete register, or a complaint without an identified root cause, weakens the file.

Subcontracting and outsourced services

Any service provider involved in the product flow or in information must be controlled in the same way as a supplier: warehousing, transport, analytical laboratories, contract packing, security or inspection services. The auditor checks that these services are approved, monitored and covered by agreements specifying responsibilities. This is an aspect often underestimated by trading companies that outsource part of their logistics.

Hazard and risk assessment

The standard requires a formalised hazard and risk assessment relating to the company's products and activities: nature of the products, origin, vulnerability to fraud or adulteration, transport and storage conditions, target customers. This analysis must be reviewed in the event of a significant change (new product, new country of origin, new supplier) and serves as the basis for the controls put in place.

Common mistakes that cause a BRCGS Agents & Brokers audit to fail

These gaps recur during preparation. Checking them upstream often prevents a major non-conformity.

1. An unclear scope : product types or offices poorly described, or exclusions not validated with the certification body.
2. Suppliers not formally approved : no written criteria, no evaluation evidence, or a list that does not match actual purchases.
3. Expired supplier evidence : out-of-date certificates or analyses due to a lack of centralised date tracking.
4. Specifications not linked to references : the document exists, but nothing proves that it corresponds to the product delivered.
5. Traceability tested in one direction only : upstream is traced, downstream is not - or the test is not documented.
6. An incomplete complaints register : complaints not closed, corrective actions without verification of effectiveness.
7. Uncovered subcontracting : hauliers or logistics providers not approved and without contractually defined responsibilities.
8. A system that is written but not applied : the procedures exist, but the records on the ground are missing. This is the most visible gap in an audit.
9. A risk analysis that is never reviewed : no review triggered after a change of supplier or a new product.
10. Lack of interview preparation : team members do not know where to find a piece of evidence or how to explain a procedure, which lengthens the audit and undermines confidence.

Take action: scoping your BRC Broker certification

Three steps are enough to get started properly.

1. Scoping : a discussion to clarify your product types, the offices concerned, the issue of the standard and the target audit date.
2. Gap analysis : a review of documentation and suppliers, with missing evidence identified.
3. Shared action plan : priorities, owners and timetable up to the audit.

Before this first discussion, prepare on your side:

• the list of your offices and the product types concerned (food, packaging, consumer goods);
• your current supplier list and the documents already available (certificates, approvals, specifications);
• your latest supplier evaluations and, where applicable, your customer complaints;
• the name of the certification body under consideration and the desired audit date.

Still undecided between several standards? See which GFSI certification to choose. Would you first like to see how document data is structured? Discover compliance and certifications.