You'll see SQF and HACCP mentioned in Ocean2Table's food safety information. Here's what those actually mean, in plain language.
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LGF's facilities carry SQF certification and follow HACCP food safety principles. Both terms show up in food safety and trust copy across the seafood industry, and both mean something specific, they're not just badges.
HACCP: Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point
HACCP is a systematic approach to identifying, evaluating, and controlling food safety hazards throughout a process, rather than only testing the finished product at the end. The seven standardized HACCP principles were formally adopted in 1997 by the U.S. National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods, building on guidance first issued in 1992, and they've since become the universal baseline food safety framework used by regulators, trade associations, and food producers worldwide, including in Canada.
In practice, HACCP means a facility has mapped out every step where a hazard, biological, chemical, or physical, could enter the product, and has a specific, monitored control point at each of those steps, rather than relying on a final inspection to catch problems.
SQF: Safe Quality Food
SQF certification is administered by SQFI (the SQF Institute), and it's one of the most widely recognized food safety certification programs globally, currently covering more than 14,000 certified sites across 40 countries and multiple industry sectors, including aquaculture and seafood processing.
SQF certification requires a facility to pass an independent, third-party audit against a published standard, and to maintain that standard on an ongoing basis, not just at the time of certification. It builds directly on HACCP principles but adds broader quality management requirements on top of the core food safety hazard controls.
Where CFIA fits in
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is the federal regulator that LGF operates under as a matter of law, every food business in Canada does. CFIA is not a certification a company "earns" the way SQF or MSC are, it's the baseline regulatory authority. SQF and HACCP represent LGF choosing to meet an additional, independently audited standard on top of the regulatory baseline everyone in the industry already has to follow.
Why it matters for what you're buying
These aren't consumer-facing marketing badges the way something like Ocean Wise is designed to be, they're operational, facility-level standards. Seeing them mentioned means the specific facility handling the product has been independently audited against a documented food safety system, not just that the fish itself came from a "sustainable" source, that's a different claim, covered by certifications like MSC and Ocean Wise instead.
Learn more: Food Safety
