LOCAL manufacturing giants, Demerara Distillers Ltd (DDL) recently received their recertification for both the Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) systems from SGS.
In a simple ceremony at the Demerara Distillers Limited head office at Diamond last week, both certificates were handed over by the Regional Managing-Director for SGS Central America and the Caribbean, Cedric Catheline, and were received by the Managing-Director of DDL, Ramesh Persaud, in the presence of other SGS and DDL officials.
The GMP certification was first issued to DDL in 2018, whilst the HACCP was done in 2015. Both certifications were issued by SGS.
Managing-Director for SGS Central America & the Caribbean region, Cedric Catheline, was delighted to meet with the team at DDL and commented that SGS has not only seen an increase in the need for these internationally recognised standards in Guyana, but the company has also seen the need for many other inspections, training & analytical services that the group provides globally. With this in mind, a branch office for SGS was registered in Guyana in late 2019.

Director – Technical Services at DDL, Sharon Sue-Hang, expressed her satisfaction at the service provided by SGS through the years and has said that DDL has always strived to implement a high level of quality standards at their manufacturing plants. The GMP is a system that ensures that manufacturing products such as food, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals are consistently produced and controlled according to set quality standards. The HACCP, on the other hand, is an international approval system that recognises that a food business has developed, documented and implemented systems and procedures to identify and control food-safety hazards and critical control points that may occur within the food business
DDL is also a pioneer for ISO certification in Guyana with SGS since it became the first local company to implement ISO 9001 quality management system with SGS in 1995. The company is due for recertification of this standard later this year. DDL is among eight other Guyanese companies that are presently certified by SGS with the ISO 9001 standard.

Today, with the emerging oil and gas industry, many other local companies have recognised the importance of quality-management certification and are in the process of obtaining this certification among others relating to industrial hygiene, safety or the environment.
Deputy Branch Manager of SGS Guyana, Davie Sukdeo, stressed that, like many other global companies, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the full phase one plan of SGS’ operations in Guyana. Despite this setback, the company is forging ahead with engagements both at a governmental level and with the private sector companies in Guyana to raise the bar on international standards. The SGS Guyana branch is registered with the Centre for Local Business Development and has already been working with several other Guyanese companies that have expressed interest in the ISO 9001 certification.
SGS is headquartered in Switzerland and is the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company. The company is recognised as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With more than 89,000 employees, SGS operates a network of more than 2,600 offices and laboratories around the world.