Add-on to core solution
BioDiversity
BioDiversity is an add-on that specifies a set of science-based requirements which help producers demonstrate their on-farm biodiversity management practices and retailers to identify suppliers that fulfill their corporate social responsibility pledges.
Monitor and enhance key biodiversity indicators
What is BioDiversity?
BioDiversity is an add-on that functions as the base for a farm-level audit which helps producers demonstrate their biodiversity management practices to retailers and traders. In turn, supply chain stakeholders may require suppliers to undergo an audit in order to fulfill their corporate social responsibility pledges. Designed to be paired with Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) for fruit and vegetables, the audit covers aspects such as soil management, land restoration measures, and integrated pest management. The add-on monitors, enhances, and protects key on-farm biodiversity aspects, raising awareness and providing guidance on the development of a comprehensive biodiversity action plan.
BioDiversity at a glance
Audited together
with IFA for fruit and vegetables to minimize the audit burden for producers
Offers cost-efficient audits
for a wide range of fruit and vegetable farm sizes and types, including smallholders and producer groups
Applicable to producers
based in the European Economic Area (EEA)
Integrates continuous improvement
into the farm-level monitoring of biodiversity issues
Establishes knowledge-sharing,
training, and capacity-building tools, as well as off-farm synergies
Supports
the UN Global Compact Food and Agriculture Business Principles
Audited together
with IFA for fruit and vegetables to minimize the audit burden for producers
Integrates continuous improvement
into the farm-level monitoring of biodiversity issues
Offers cost-efficient audits
for a wide range of fruit and vegetable farm sizes and types, including smallholders and producer groups
Establishes knowledge-sharing,
training, and capacity-building tools, as well as off-farm synergies
Applicable to producers
based in the European Economic Area (EEA)
Supports
the UN Global Compact Food and Agriculture Business Principles
Which topics does BioDiversity address?
BioDiversity was developed by a multistakeholder project team on the initiative of the German retailer Lidl in 2020. The collaboration brought together biodiversity expertise from across the supply chain, NGOs, and academia, including Sustainable Food Systems GmbH (SFS), the Global Nature Fund, Bioland, fresh produce suppliers, producers in Spain, Poland, Italy, and Germany, and the Nürtingen-Geislingen University in Germany.
Our approach to standard setting ensures that add-ons to core solutions remain robust, realistic, and cost-efficient while meeting the evolving demands of buyers.
Core topics in BioDiversity v1 include:
Biodiversity action plan
Farm areas dedicated to biodiversity
Protection and restoration measures
Soil and nutrient management plan
Integrated pest management
Wastewater management and protection of water sources
Off-farm synergies and collaboration
Training, knowledge sharing, and capacity building
BioDiversity representative
Farm self-assessment on biodiversity
Discover how BioDiversity helps you address challenges in the agricultural sector .
Who should use BioDiversity?
BioDiversity v1 is applicable only to fruit and vegetable producers located in the EEA.
The add-on offers cost-efficient audit options for both individual producers (single site and multisite producers) and producer groups, including smallholders. Producers can get audited in any EEA country where a GLOBALG.A.P. approved certification body (CB) conducts audits.
The add-on must be paired with either v5.2 or v5.4-1-GFS of IFA for fruit and vegetables . An updated version to align with IFA v6 is scheduled for 2024.
How does BioDiversity work?
Compliance with the add-on requirements is audited annually by an accredited and independent third-party CB together with the annual IFA audit (or an audit against a benchmarked scheme/checklist ).
Producers can choose from any GLOBALG.A.P. approved CB active in the relevant country – although the same CB which conducts the IFA audit must also conduct the BioDiversity audit.
A successful CB audit results in a letter of conformance valid for one year.
The add-on is composed of control points and compliance criteria (CPCCs). CPCCs are graded in three levels: Critical, Major Must, and Minor Must.
Control points
Fundamentals that set the foundation of a GLOBALG.A.P. requirement
Written in question form
Compliance criteria
Methods that producers can use to demonstrate a control point to be true
Evidence must demonstrate that the outcome is achieved
Read more about the audit process and add-on requirements .
How is conformance status verified?
Every producer registered in the GLOBALG.A.P. certification system is assigned a 13-digit GLOBALG.A.P. identification number (e.g., a GLOBALG.A.P. Number (GGN)). This number allows real-time verification of conformance status in the GLOBALG.A.P. IT systems , upholding our rigorous transparency requirements throughout the supply chain.
Producers can control data access and privacy rights for audit reports, and the reports are not shared publicly or with third parties. This process is handled via your chosen CB.
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