Compared schemes are certification schemes that have undergone an internal desk review process by the GLOBALG.A.P. Secretariat and have been found to partially conform with a GLOBALG.A.P. counterpart. They differ from benchmarked schemes and checklists because they have not been through the full benchmarking process and are not equivalent to any GLOBALG.A.P. standard or add-on.

GLOBALG.A.P. benchmarking is the process of recognizing alignment between different farm assurance systems. This reduces complexity, administration, time, effort, and costs for stakeholders throughout the value chain by cutting duplication.

As a result, producers enjoy the benefits of certification to different schemes and/or checklists through a single audit process, the benchmarked scheme and checklist owners gain international recognition through equivalence with a leading solution from GLOBALG.A.P., and retailers can source with confidence from a greater pool of suppliers around the world.

Compared schemes are not equivalent to their GLOBALG.A.P. counterparts. To avoid confusion in the supply chain, producers certified to those schemes are therefore not registered in the GLOBALG.A.P. IT systems.

Yes, once any outstanding discrepancies between the applicant’s scheme and the relevant GLOBALG.A.P. standard or add-on version have been resolved. A new benchmarking application including participation in all the review stages is then required.  Steps to upgrade from compared scheme to benchmarked scheme include: 

• The update and/or addition of all nonequivalent or unaddressed certification rules or G.A.P. requirements 

• The creation of a new scheme version, or the creation of a new scheme with a name that clearly differentiates it from the existing compared scheme 

• The full application process for GLOBALG.A.P. benchmarking, including evaluation by the GLOBALG.A.P. Secretariat, on-site assessments, peer review by GLOBALG.A.P. Community Members, and recommendation from a benchmarking committee

Scheme and checklist owners can apply for benchmarking to any GLOBALG.A.P. standard, GLOBALG.A.P. add-on, or a combination of both. Our portfolio of standards and add-ons can help you identify harmonization opportunities.

Scheme and checklist owners must be a legal entity with liability insurance and follow ISO/IEC 17065 rules. They must be operational for a minimum of 12 months and issue certificates to at least 10 producers before applying for benchmarking. Scheme and checklist owners must have ownership and legal protection of their scheme and checklist documents. For more details on benchmarking requirements, see section 2 of the GLOBALG.A.P. benchmarking regulations.