Part 1
A standard that matches our standards
The BRC Global Standard for Storage and Distribution sets a high bar for food safety, traceability, and quality management. Achieving AA Grade confirms that our systems and behaviours are consistently strong across warehouse and transport operations. For our teams in Banbury and on the road, it validates thousands of daily decisions where there is no room for error.
“BRC AA is external recognition for an internal truth. We do the right things even when no one is watching. The audit simply saw what our customers experience every day.”
Mike Philips, Owner
Culture, not compliance
Compliance can be taught. Culture has to be lived. At Ralph Davies International, every role connects to food safety and product integrity. That is why our induction and refresher training goes beyond the manual. We simulate real scenarios, we test, and we debrief. We focus on behaviours that prevent issues long before they appear on a KPI dashboard.
How that shows up on the floor:
- Process adherence: 100 percent measured and reinforced across shifts.
- Stock accuracy: 100 percent through dual verification and location control.
- Delivery accuracy: 98.5 percent on a rolling basis, with a defined plan to close the final gap.
- OTIF performance tracked in PowerBI, reviewed daily, and actioned with root cause analysis when we see variance.
“The badge is important. The habits are everything. We built audit readiness into the way we work so we are always inspection ready.”
Stuart Cribbs, Warehouse Manager
Warehouse excellence by design
Our Banbury site is engineered for food ingredients. Clean zones, segregated flows for dry and liquid products, allergen management, calibrated equipment, and temperature monitoring where needed. Every pallet is visible in real time and fully traceable from intake to dispatch. We document at the point of work, not at the end of the day, which is why our records are both complete and current.
Core disciplines we never compromise:
- Hygiene and housekeeping embedded into shift handovers.
- Traceability at unit and batch level, linked to customer specs.
- Verification of picks and counts using scanning and checks that reduce human error.
- People with the right training, refreshed to keep skills sharp.
“Stock accuracy is not a target here. It is the floor. Our team knows that a single wrong pick can stop a line, so we prevent it with layered checks that do not slow the job.”
Stuart Cribbs, Warehouse Manager
Transport that protects product and reputation
Food ingredient logistics lives and dies on the quality of the final mile. Our fleet investments reflect that reality. New Volvo units carry DVS cameras and 360 degree warning systems for urban safety, plus in-cab tools that support driver decision making. Load integrity, vehicle hygiene, and documented cleaning regimes form part of every route plan, not just audits.
“We run compliance as a discipline, not a deadline. Vehicles are cleaned to documented standards, seals and temperatures are checked, and drivers sign off their rigs before they roll. That is how you keep standards consistent at scale.”
Martin Cartwright, Transport Manager
Data that drives better days
PowerBI gives us a single source of truth for OTIF, delivery accuracy, scan compliance, near misses, and corrective actions. We share the right views with customers so they can see performance the same way we do. That transparency keeps us honest and speeds up improvement because everyone is working from the facts.
“Numbers and behaviours go together. When the data shows friction, we fix the process and support the person. That is how you make performance sustainable.”
Josh Philips, Finance Director
Why it matters to our people
BRC AA recognises the pride our teams already take in their work. It shows that professional standards and personal standards can be one and the same. The result is safer food ingredients, fewer stoppages, fewer claims, and a calmer day for everyone involved.
Stats at a glance:
- Process adherence: 100 percent
- Stock accuracy: 100 percent
- Delivery accuracy: 98.5 percent with actions to reach 100
- OTIF tracked and reviewed in PowerBI every day
Up next in the series: What BRC AA means for our customers, in practical terms.
