6 Derogations

Under certain exceptional circumstances, the BMPA may allow a derogation from the requirements of the Quality Pork Charter. For this to be affected, the following steps shall be taken:

• The Charter participants shall make an application for a derogation in writing to the BMPA detailing the relevant clause(s) and reasons why the requirements cannot be met, the suggested action to be taken and the timeframe that the derogation is required to be in place until full compliance with the Charter requirements can be achieved
• The BMPA shall, where appropriate, consult the PTAC for a ruling on the acceptance of the suggested derogation and respond accordingly to the Charter participant
• A derogation shall only be deemed as granted once it is confirmed by the BMPA in writing and that the Charter participant has provided written assurance that all conditions will be met and maintained. A copy of the derogation and conditions relating to this shall be forwarded to the Charter participant and service provider for their records. 
• All derogations shall be subject to review once the stated timeframe has lapsed
• Where a derogation has been granted and a subsequent Charter audit or spot check highlights that the conditions agreed with the Charter participant have not been met, the derogation shall lapse with immediate effect
• If a Charter member requires a long-term derogation (for example, using off-site washing facilities), the Charter participant mustrequest that the PTAC consider an appropriate solution. The proposed solution must ensure that the integrity of the Charter is not undermined, and the quality of the product maintained. The PTAC will only consider a long-term proposal if a site is unable to comply due to circumstances that are beyond their control. Any additional premises or sites associated or named in a derogation of this nature shall be included in the scope of the audit for the duration of the derogation.
• It is the Charter participants’ responsibility to ensure that any additional premises or sites associated or named in a long-term derogation conforms to all aspects of the Charter including, where relevant, documentation and internal audits and Charter auditors may, in addition to reviewing this documentation, visit these additional premises.

For existing Charter participants to operate from new premises and manufacture BMPA Quality Pork Charter products approved at a different site, prior to the new site’s BRC approval (usually a new site needs to have been in production for three months before it can be audited against the BRC GFS). The BMPA shall require the following conditions to be met by the Charter participant for a derogation to be granted:

• A request shall be made to the BMPA for a derogation for the new premises and the reasons for this
• The Charter participant shall have a long-standing record of compliance against the BRC GFS and the relevant BMPA pork module
• There shall be evidence that the site has been approved by the relevant licensing authority
• An application form shall be completed and sent to the BMPA for the new site with details of the pork module(s) it intends to manufacture
• A written assurance shall be sent to the BMPA Technical Policy Manager stating that all relevant technical policies, procedures and other systems of operation, including staff training, have been transferred to and operate at the new site
• A written commitment shall be given to the service provider(s) to undertake a BMPA pork module approval audit within 4 weeks of the site opening and a BRC GFS audit within 3-4 months of the site being operational
• The BMPA pork module audit shall incorporate a review of the sites HACCP plan to verify that the food production system is safe

If a critical or major non-conformance is raised against either BRC GFS or the requirements of the BMPA pork module(s) at the time of this audit, then the derogation shall be withdrawn, and the new site shall register as a new applicant in line with the BMPA Quality Pork Charter rules and procedures. Under such circumstances assured product cannot be manufactured until the site has successfully been approved against the requirements of the relevant BMPA pork module.