A food facility pest audit checks whether a plant's pest management program would stand up to a certification auditor. It is not the technician's regular service visit; it is a step back to look at the whole program: is the provider licensed and visiting on schedule, is the site map current, are the devices where the map says, is anyone reading the trend data, and are the doors, drains and storage practices keeping pests out in the first place. This template walks those questions in the order an auditor would, grades every check the way third-party audits do, and turns each gap into a corrective action with an owner. Fill it in here and download a PDF without an account, or speak while you walk, and the document writes itself.
Who uses it, and when
Food safety and quality managers run it as an internal audit a month or two before AIB, BRCGS, SQF or FSSC 22000 auditors arrive. Pest control companies use it as a quality review of their own commercial food accounts, often by a branch manager or technical director riding along with the route technician. It also works when a facility changes provider and wants a baseline, or after a sighting or customer complaint.
Those schemes are named on the form only so the report shows which audit it is preparing for. Each scheme has its own wording and its own scoring, and the auditor applies those; this template records what you found.
Paperwork first, then the floor
Certification auditors usually start with the pest binder: the contract, the provider's licenses and insurance, a dated site map, the device list, service reports for every visit, the approved pesticide list with labels and safety data sheets, the sighting log and the trend reports. Then they take the map onto the floor and check a sample of devices against it. This form follows the same order.
For every pesticide used on site, the records should show the product name, its EPA Registration Number, the amount used, where and on what pest. State rules decide exactly what a commercial application record must contain, so check with your state lead agency. The form never records or suggests rates: the label is the law.
Grading: minor, major, critical
Each check is graded the way most food safety schemes grade a finding. Conforms means it meets the program. A minor nonconformance is a lapse that does not put product at risk, such as a device missing its label. A major nonconformance is a gap in the system, such as a site map two years out of date or no trend review at all. A critical nonconformance is a direct risk to food, such as live insects in an ingredient or rodent droppings on packaging. Minor earns half credit in the score; major and critical earn none and appear first in the findings.
Prevention carries the most weight
Devices tell you pests are present; they do not keep pests out. Auditors increasingly look at the conditions behind the counts: gaps under dock doors, unscreened vents, spillage under equipment, pallets stacked against walls with no inspection aisle, damaged goods left sitting, dumpsters parked next to an open door. The exterior, proofing and sanitation sections carry those checks, and a rising trend at a device should always lead back to one of them.
Common questions
How often should a food facility pest audit be done?
Most plants run one at least once a year, often a few weeks before their certification audit, with some sites doing it quarterly. Run one again after a change of pest provider, a significant sighting or a customer complaint involving pests.
Does this form match the AIB, BRCGS or SQF requirements?
It covers the topics those schemes look at, but it is not any scheme's official checklist and passing it does not mean a site will pass a certification audit. Use your scheme's current standard alongside it and grade against that.
Who should carry out the audit?
Someone trained in pest management who is not the person servicing the account: the food safety manager, a quality auditor, or a manager or technical specialist from the pest control company. A fresh pair of eyes finds the blocked device and the out-of-date map that a regular visitor stops seeing.
How many devices should I check?
Enough to judge whether the map and the floor agree. Many auditors check a sample from each area, inside and out, plus every device near a known problem. Add one entry per device you check, with its number, so the result can be compared next time.
Can rodenticide bait be used inside a food plant?
Many food safety schemes and customer standards do not allow toxic rodent bait inside areas where food is handled or stored, and expect traps or non-toxic monitors there instead. What is allowed depends on your scheme, your customers and the product label. This form records what is in place; it does not recommend products.