Nine Mistakes to Avoid as a Quality and Food Safety Auditor

Over time, Clara, an enthusiastic and diligent quality and food safety auditor, faced multiple challenges and learned invaluable lessons from her missteps. Let’s follow her journey as she navigates the complexities of auditing and uncovers the nine mistakes every auditor should avoid.
=Reading time: < 1 minute
Marc Cwikowski
January 7, 2025

Clara, an enthusiastic and diligent quality and food safety auditor, worked for the internal audit organization of a global food and beverage company. Her role required her to travel to various facilities worldwide to audit compliance with stringent quality and safety standards.

Over time, she faced multiple challenges and learned invaluable lessons from her missteps. Let’s follow her journey as she navigates the complexities of auditing and uncovers the nine mistakes every auditor should avoid. The lapses are categorized into nine themes:

Clara’s journey shows auditors how combining technical know-how, clear communication, and solid relationships can turn audits into something truly meaningful and impactful.

You may also like...

An Audit Writes a Shared Story Before It Begins

When preparation strengthens collaboration rather than polishing documentation, the audit becomes more than a checkpoint. It becomes a moment of collective clarity and, sometimes unexpectedly, a source of shared memories that bind teams together long after the audit cycle ends.
Tülay Kahraman
March 3, 2026

Preparing the Next Generation of Auditors: A Reflection for Food Safety Auditing

The next generation will not simply inherit the profession. They will reshape it. The question is whether current structures are ready to evolve with them, or whether they will try to force tomorrow’s auditors into yesterday’s roles.
Tülay Kahraman
February 17, 2026

Learning from Aviation: A Perspective on Food Safety Auditing

Our interest in learning from other sectors comes from a question: if food safety is a public health field, why not learn from industries like aviation that manage life-critical risks daily? Gaining knowledge from an industry with established auditing practices improves our judgment and recognizes food safety auditing as a crucial safety discipline, comparable to those in the most demanding industries.
Marc Cwikowski
February 3, 2026