National Technical Working Groups

NTWG members include stakeholders from across the value chain, such as producer and supplier organizations, certification bodies, retailers and food service companies, and other relevant associations. Participation is free of charge worldwide, and members are added continuously.

The host organization must be a GLOBALG.A.P. Community Member. In recognition of the contribution that hosts make to the GLOBALG.A.P. governance structure, the organization receives a discount on the annual community membership fee if the NTWG remains active.

Stakeholders such as producers and retailers are encouraged to connect with their country’s NTWG when seeking help understanding a GLOBALG.A.P. standard or add-on in their local context. This is coordinated by the GLOBALG.A.P. Secretariat – contact us for more information.

NIGs are developed primarily by national technical working groups (NTWGs), so you must first ensure you have joined the NTWG in your country. In cases where no NTWG exists, a certification body may also lead the process.

To develop the NIG, NTWGs can download the NIG template created by the GLOBALG.A.P. Secretariat. The template provides space for the country-specific interpretation of the standard/add-on criteria. All NIG drafts should be sent as a Microsoft Word document to ntwg@globalgap.org for validation and review. See the development process above for a step-by-step guide.

Only standard or add-on criteria can be interpreted by a national technical working group (NTWG). A country-specific interpretation does not replace the original criteria, but simply clarifies their implementation in the context of the target country. The principles to which the criteria are connected are fixed and cannot be changed or interpreted. Where there is no country-specific addition to the criteria to aid understanding and implementation, the original criteria remain valid.

NTWGs are not required to interpret all criteria. Where there is no relevant country-specific interpretation, the NIG template cell is left empty. 

If a proposed interpretation refers to external documents, such as records or risk analyses, they must be included in English for review by the GLOBALG.A.P. Secretariat. If certain principles and criteria require evaluation in relation to national or regional legislation, the NTWG must also explain the relevant parts of the legal requirements. If there is no applicable legislation, the cell should specify “not applicable.”

The standard or add-on principles and criteria are always provided in English. Any relevant country-specific interpretation should be provided in both English and the local language.

The process from submission to publication depends on the response time of the national technical working group to review comments. This can vary from three to nine months in total. See the step-by-step guide to NIG development for more information on each stage of the process.

Yes, NIGs are developed specifically to help producers interpret and implement a GLOBALG.A.P. standard or add-on and must be applied in the audit process. Producers are given three months from the date of publication to implement the NIG requirements. After the initial three months, accreditation bodies must ensure that all certification bodies have adopted the relevant NIG in their auditing and certification activities in the target country.

The newest GLOBALG.A.P. standards and add-ons adopt a more outcome-oriented approach. This means that the implementation of principles and criteria may vary due to local circumstances, but it is the outcome that counts when demonstrating compliance. NIGs can help producers to achieve the necessary outcome through an approach adapted to the needs of the target country.