GLOBALG.A.P. is a farm assurance program, translating consumer requirements into Good Agricultural Practice. EurepGAP is a common standard for
farm management
Agricultural science (or agriscience for short) is a broad multidisciplinary field of biology that encompasses the parts of exact, natural, economic and social sciences that are used in the practice and understanding of agriculture. Profession ...
practice created in the late 1990s by several
European
supermarket
A supermarket is a self-service Retail#Types of outlets, shop offering a wide variety of food, Drink, beverages and Household goods, household products, organized into sections. This kind of store is larger and has a wider selection than earli ...
chains and their major suppliers. GAP is an acronym for
Good Agricultural Practices
Good agricultural practice (GAP) is a certification system for agriculture, specifying procedures (and attendant documentation) that must be implemented to create food for consumers or further processing that is safe and wholesome, using sustaina ...
. It is now the world's most widely implemented farm certification scheme. Most European customers for agricultural products now demand evidence of EurepGAP certification as a prerequisite for doing business.
The standard was developed using the
Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points
Hazard analysis and critical control points, or HACCP (), is a systematic preventive approach to food safety from biological, chemical, and physical hazards in production processes that can cause the finished product to be unsafe and designs me ...
(HACCP) guidelines published by the
United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)french: link=no, Organisation des Nations unies pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture; it, Organizzazione delle Nazioni Unite per l'Alimentazione e l'Agricoltura is an intern ...
, and is governed according to the ISO/IEC 17065 for product certification schemes. Unlike other farm certification schemes, it has definitive rules for growers to follow, and each production unit is assessed by independent third party auditors. These auditors work for commercial certification companies who are licensed by the EurepGAP secretariat to conduct audits and award certificates where merited.
In September 2007, EurepGAP changed its name to GLOBALG.A.P.. The decision was taken to reflect its expanding international role in establishing Good Agricultural Practices between multiple retailers and their suppliers. GLOBALG.A.P. Numbers (GGNs) are linked to producers, and Chain of Custody (CoC). A series of the standards can be accessed online.
In February 2009 GLOBALG.A.P. launched 'ChinaGAP' following successful completion of the benchmarking of ChinaGAP against the GLOBALG.A.P. Good Agricultural Practice reference code.
See also
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Agriculture ministry
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...
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Global Food Safety Initiative The Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) is a private organization working as a "Coalition of Action" from The Consumer Goods Forum (CGF) bringing together retailers and brand owners (manufacturers) from across the CGF membership operating as mult ...
(GFSI)
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Good Agricultural Practices
Good agricultural practice (GAP) is a certification system for agriculture, specifying procedures (and attendant documentation) that must be implemented to create food for consumers or further processing that is safe and wholesome, using sustaina ...
Notes
External links
GLOBALG.A.P. Website
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Standards organisations in Germany
Agricultural organisations based in Germany