US: Risk tool helps achieve GAP certification
Posted by Labels: Agriculture Business, Certifications and Standards, News, USA, USDA
A free online tool to help U.S. producers of all sizes achieve Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) harmonized standards and certification was recently announced.The USDA’s GAP audit verification program focuses on best agricultural practices to verify farms are producing, and packers are handling and storing, fruits and vegetables in the safest manner possible to minimize food safety hazards, according to a news release. The tool — developed by FamilyFarmed.org with funding from USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) — helps farmers design a customized manual to meet GAP harmonized standards and certification requirements, including USDA GAP standards, and mitigate business risks by answering a few questions.
Part of FamilyFarmed.org’s On-Farm Food Safety Project, the tool is the first of its kind and was developed by a coalition of farm and produce industry partners. It is available at www.onfarmfoodsafety.org/. The USDA’s GAP audit verification program, administered by the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), focuses on best agricultural practices to verify farms are producing fruits and vegetables in the safest manner possible to minimize risks of microbial food safety hazards. USDA’s voluntary audit-based program verifies adherence to the recommendations made in the Food and Drug Administration’s Guide to Minimize Microbial Food Safety Hazards for Fresh Fruits and Vegetables. To generate a food-safety plan using the tool, the user must answer questions on topics including: worker health and hygiene, agricultural water, previous land use, soil amendments and manure, animals and pest control, packinghouse activities, product transportation, ag chemicals, and field harvesting.
In addition to helping farmers create a food-safety plan, the tool offers farmers a full set of record- keeping templates to document their food safety efforts as well as useful food-safety resources. After users complete their food-safety plan and compile documentation, they may apply for GAP food-safety certification, a process asked for by many larger buyers. Large buyers — including Compass Group, SYSCO and Chipotle Mexican Grill — supported the project financially and with technical assistance. Groups that participated in the development and review of the tool include: Chipotle Mexican Grill, Community Alliance with Family Farmers, Compass Group, Earthbound Farm, Farm Aid, the Food and Drug Administration, NSF Agriculture, Produce Marketing Association, SYSCO, The Organic Center, Western Growers, Wallace Center at Winrock International, Wild Farm Alliance, the University of California at Davis, United Fresh Produce Association, and the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
iowafarmertoday.com
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