AQL (Acceptable Quality Level)
Statistical sampling plan for inspection of product lots
AQL (Acceptable Quality Level) is the maximum percentage of defective items in a lot that can be considered acceptable as a process average for sampling inspection. AQL is the foundation of statistical quality control in international trade.
The standard reference is ISO 2859-1 (formerly MIL-STD-105E), which defines: - Lot size brackets. - Inspection levels (I, II, III for general inspection; S-1 to S-4 for special inspection). - Sample sizes. - Accept/reject numbers based on AQL.
Common AQLs in food inspection: - **AQL 0.65**: critical defects (food safety, allergens, foreign body). - **AQL 2.5**: major defects (quality, packaging, labeling). - **AQL 4.0**: minor defects (aesthetic, minor packaging).
For Egyptian fresh produce inspection, FoodGate Audit applies AQL sampling per ISO 2859 unless the buyer specifies a different sampling plan. A typical 1×40' container of mangoes (~25,000 pieces, ~1,200 boxes) would require ~80 boxes sampled per Inspection Level II, with AQL 0.65/2.5/4.0 evaluated separately for critical, major, and minor defects.
FoodGate's pre-shipment reports show: lot size, sample size, defects found, accept/reject decision per AQL category, and overall pass/fail.