The GGN label is GLOBALG.A.P.’s consumer label. It stands for certified, responsible farming and transparency.
Found on both packed and loose products, the GGN label exists to offer consumers consistent, relevant assurance and orientation throughout the store. It does so by confirming that the products were farmed in line with certified, responsible farming practices that cover food safety, environmental protection, animal welfare, social responsibility, and supply chain transparency. The GGN label may be applied to:

• Fruit and vegetables
• Farmed seafood and algae
• Flowers and plants

Transparency is at the heart of our label – our label connects you to the roots of your food and plants. And by promoting certified, responsible farming that benefits farmers, retailers, and consumers around the globe, we support worldwide sustainable development for the good of future generations and our planet.

We believe consumers have the right to know where their food comes from and how it was produced. We promote the dialog between producers and consumers in order to lay a foundation for modern, conscious, and responsible production. And we believe consumers have the right to know how the product reaches their market. Food production today is no longer a simple matter of one farmer selling products directly to a few retailers. Whether from seed to fully-grown plant or from roe to marinated salmon steak, a product passes through many stages and hands – and often continents – before it reaches the end consumer. This makes it difficult to figure out who was involved in producing it. We are committed to making the roots of the finished product visible for everyone.

The GGN label initiative assures certified, responsible farming with transparency.
The GGN label is not limited to a particular product scope: It can be applied to a whole range of farmed products, from fruit and vegetables to flowers and farmed fish.
The farmer is at the center of the GGN label initiative, and therefore at the center of the GGN label logo.
The magnifying glass symbolizes the transparency we enable and the trust that the GGN label can build through this transparency.
The prominent check mark provides assurance of the farmer’s adherence to responsible farming practices and the quality goods they produce according to internationally recognized standards.

The portal (www.ggn.org) is at the heart of the transparency which the GGN label promises. It is home to the profiles of all the producers and traders whose products carry the GGN label logo. Profiles are matched with the unique GGNs or CoC Numbers, and each profile is verified by the GGN label team before publication. The portal also provides information on responsible farming practices and how certification works.

The GGN label provides transparency through unique 13-digit numbers that are linked to members of the supply chain with GLOBALG.A.P. certification.

GLOBALG.A.P. Numbers (GGNs) are linked to producers, and Chain of Custody (CoC) Numbers are linked to other businesses such as packers or processors. These numbers are printed onto the packaging of products with the GGN label, or shown on price tags for loose products. When consumers find a GGN or CoC Number on their product, they can enter it into the search system on the GGN label portal to find a profile for the corresponding farm or business.   

This system helps showcase the businesses who practice and support responsible farming. In turn, this level of transparency encourages consumers to trust the GGN label and brands that feature it. 

The GGN label can be used for products originating from farms with valid Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) certification for the following scopes:
Aquaculture:
All species of farmed finfish, crustaceans, molluscs, and algae
Floriculture:
Potted plants, cut flowers, Christmas trees, flower bouquets (mono and mixed, if all ingredients come from certified production), flower or plant arrangements (if all ingredients come from certified production), flower bulbs
Agriculture:
Fresh fruits and vegetables including fresh herbs (not dried or otherwise preserved). For packed products, all products contained in the pack must come from certified production processes.

For products to be eligible for the GGN label, each member in the supply chain must hold the relevant certification and/or level of assessment compliance.
All products carrying the GGN label must fulfil the following requirements:

At farm level

• A valid certificate for the GLOBALG.A.P. Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) standard (or a GLOBALG.A.P. equivalent benchmarked scheme for Flowers and Ornamentals or Fruit and Vegetables)
•  Full compliance with the GLOBALG.A.P. Risk Assessment on Social Practice. This GLOBALG.A.P. add-on is assessed during the IFA inspection/audit and checks social welfare on the farm.
• For the GGN label for agriculture only (fruit and vegetables): participation in a GLOBALG.A.P. approved residue monitoring system (RMS) and data sharing with GLOBALG.A.P.
  
  

At post-farm level

• A valid certificate for the GLOBALG.A.P. Chain of Custody standard.
  The GLOBALG.A.P. Chain of Custody (CoC) standard ensures the segregation and traceability, and thus integrity, of GLOBALG.A.P. certified products* throughout their journey from the farm to the market shelf.
  *The term “certified product” refers to products originating from a farm with a GLOBALG.A.P. certified production process.

A residue monitoring system ensures that producers comply with the legal maximum residue levels for pesticides. Within the context of the GGN label for agriculture (Fruit and Vegetables), we require producers to use a GLOBALG.A.P. approved RMS and to share the test results for residue levels (MRL test results).

The new GGN label logo will be available as of 1 May 2021 for all scopes.

For existing GGN label licensees (for certified floriculture and certified aquaculture), all artworks submitted for approval must carry the new GGN label logo as of 1 September 2021. Old, pre-printed packaging may be used until September 2022.

Please see the GGN label brochures for an outline of the GGN label fees.

Yes, a licensing contract is necessary.

The licensee (license holder) is the entity that legally owns or has bindingly ordered the product at the time the visual elements of the GGN label are applied. The licensee is responsible for paying the GGN label fees and getting the packaging materials approved. This entity could be a producer, a trader, a processor or packer, a retailer, or a restaurant chain. The licensee always has their own valid GLOBALG.A.P. Number (GGN) or CoC Number. Applications for a GGN label license are made through the back end of the GGN label portal. You must first create an account.  

You do not require a GGN label license.

To get started with the GGN label, please complete the following steps:

1. Ensure that your Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) certificate is up to date.
2. Ensure that you have a fully compliant GRASP assessment (GLOBALG.A.P. Risk Assessment on Social Practice).
3. Ensure that you sell to Chain of Custody (CoC) certified traders or directly to retailers/consumer-facing organizations.
4. Build your profile on the GGN label portal (see our user manual for guidance: www.usermanual-ggn.org).
5. Inform your buyers that they can use the GGN label to highlight their commitment to responsible farming.

You require a GGN label license.

To get started with the GGN label, please complete the following steps:

1. Ensure that your Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) certificate is up to date.
2. Ensure that you have a fully compliant GRASP assessment (GLOBALG.A.P. Risk Assessment on Social Practice).
3. Ensure that you sell to Chain of Custody (CoC) certified traders or directly to retailers/consumer-facing organizations.
4. Apply for your GGN label license through the GGN label portal (www.ggn.org). To do so you must first create an account.
5. Build your profile on the GGN label portal (see our user manual for guidance: www.usermanual-ggn.org) and inform your customers that they can use the GGN label to highlight their commitment to responsible farming.

Since you legally own (or have bindingly ordered) the products at the moment the GGN label visual elements are applied to the packaging, you require a GGN label license.

To get started with the GGN label, please complete the following steps:

1. Get GLOBALG.A.P. Chain of Custody (CoC) certification.
2. Ensure that the farms you source from have a valid IFA certificate and a fully compliant GRASP assessment (GLOBALG.A.P. Risk Assessment on Social Practice).
3. Ensure your suppliers have CoC certification and that you sell to CoC certified traders or directly to retailers/consumer-facing organizations.
4. Apply for your GGN label license through the GGN label portal (www.ggn.org). To do so you must first create an account.
5. Build your profile on the GGN label portal (see our user manual for guidance).

The new logo will be available for existing GGN label licensees as of 1 May 2021.
Starting from 1 September 2021, all artworks submitted to the GGN label back office for approval must carry the new “GGN certified farming” logo.

We want to make the transition to the new logo as smooth as possible for all our stakeholders. For this reason, we have planned a transition period which will end in September 2022. This should offer sufficient time to make use of existing packaging materials which have already been printed with the old logos

Yes. A new license agreement needs to be signed together with a formal cancellation of the previously signed agreement.

The licensee should log in to their account on the back end of the GGN label portal. The new license agreement will be available there for signature and download.
The form for cancellation of existing agreements will be sent out via e-mail. (Note: Both documents need to be signed.)

Artwork with the new GGN label logo can be submitted for approval immediately after signing the new GGN label license agreement. Please submit designs via your account on the back end of the GGN label portal.

All new artwork is to be uploaded for approval on the Product Approval Module (PAM) found in your account on ggn.org. Access to this module will be given after the new license agreement has been signed. See detailed instructions for submitting artwork via PAM in the GGN label user manual.

All packaging artworks must be re-submitted via the Product Approval Module (PAM) found in your account on www.ggn.org. Switching the logo without re-submitting the artwork for approval is not permitted.

No, both licensing fees and payment interval remain unchanged.