Berlin/Cologne, Germany (6 April 2022) – From 5 to 7 April 2022, GLOBALG.A.P. is taking part in the much-anticipated onsite return of the Fruit Logistica trade fair in Berlin, Germany. 

In keeping with this year's theme “Go future: New ideas, new input, and new solutions” GLOBALG.A.P. hosted a press conference on 6 April to announce the launch of the new flagship standard Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) version 6. Speakers including GLOBALG.A.P. Managing Director, Kristian Moeller, Eugenio Guidoccio from REWE Group, Stefan Haensel from Lidl Germany, Ondina Afonso from Sonae MC, Alejandro Martínez Berriochoa from EROSKI Spain, Dr Rainer Weisshaidinger from Sustainable Food Systems, and Ralph Dejas from Global Nature Fund, provided comprehensive insights into a range of new and updated products, as well as unveiling GLOBALG.A.P.’s vision for the future: Smart farm assurance solutions.

The future of farming is smart

Driven by the need to ensure that farm assurance standards evolve with the industry and the requirements of supply chains around the world, GLOBALG.A.P. is now hailing a new era of processes which will connect all products and services in a smarter, simpler, and more intuitive way. Presenting the new vision for the first time at Fruit Logistica 2022, the GLOBALG.A.P. team proudly introduced smart farm assurance solutions.

Smart farm assurance solutions represent the framework that will underpin all of GLOBALG.A.P.’s future activities and support the goal of fostering the global adoption of safe, socially and environmentally responsible farming practices around the world. This is based on four pillars that will ensure solutions are both fit for the future and easier to use for stakeholders across the entire supply chain. The four pillars consist of smarter standards and add-ons, a smarter approach to sustainability, smarter systems and services, and the smarter integration of data. The first two pillars will be spearheaded by the April launch of the revised IFA v6 standard, the revised GRASP v2add-on, and the new BioDiversity add-on.  

The latter two pillars will be deployed progressively over time as the new systems and processes are implemented. 

IFA revision reflects industry-wide collaboration

The launch of IFA v6, GLOBALG.A.P.’s flagship standard, is the result of an extensive two-year World Consultation Tour. Conducted from 2019 to 2021, it featured 185 hours of online webinars with almost 700 participants across 20 time zones. From producers and suppliers to retailers and civil society, GLOBALG.A.P. considers the revision and improvement of IFA v6 a collaborative project of all stakeholders and partners concerned with responsible farming practices.

The result of this collaboration is a smarter standard that takes a holistic approach through the key topics of food safety, environmental sustainability, animal health and welfare, workers’ well-being, and traceability. The standard will also be available in two parallel editions for the first time, with IFA v6 Smart representing the flagship offering and IFA v6 GFS being applicable to producers who require GFSI recognition.

IFA v6 launches on 26 April 2022 with the plants and aquaculture scopes. More information can be found on the dedicated IFA v6 webpage. 

Biodiversity and social responsibility in the spotlight 

Fruit Logistica also marked the launch of two key add-ons in the GLOBALG.A.P.portfolio – the revised GLOBALG.A.P. Risk Assessment on Social Practice (GRASP v2) and the new BioDiversity add-on, developed on the initiative of retailer Lidl.

GRASP has seen increasing adoption across the sector, with over 110,000 producers successfully demonstrating compliance at the close of 2021. Version 2 of the add-on tackles some of the most pressing social issues facing the global supply chain, including aspects such as worker exploitation, child labor, and human rights. GRASP can be assessed at the same time as the IFA audit, providing a cost-effective way for producers to demonstrate social responsibility practices and for retailers to transparently source products from operations that are aligned to their CSR policies.

Through the all-new BioDiversity add-on, GLOBALG.A.P. recognizes that protecting biodiversity has become one of the leading challenges facing the agricultural sector and food supply chains.In line with the EU European Green Deal, the farm-level biodiversity management tool was developed by a multi-stakeholder project team including the retailer Lidl, Sustainable Food Systems GmbH, Global Nature Fund, Bioland, Nürtingen-Geislingen University and representatives of producers across Europe. The add-on lays out a set of science-based criteria, which help fruit and vegetable producers of all sizes to demonstrate their biodiversity practices. Version 1 will initially be available to producers in the European Economic Area from April 2022, with the audits being conducted at the same time as IFA audits in order to leverage synergies between the two standards.

Marion Hammerl, President of Global Nature Fund, stated: “ It is scientifically proven that biodiversity loss is the biggest challenge for our planet - and for agriculture - next to climate change. The add-on helps protect biodiversity by setting a cut-off date for conversion of natural ecosystems to agricultural land, requiring a biodiversity management plan, establishing more effective criteria for soil conservation and integrated pest management, and more. The reference to the farm's interaction with neighboring landscapes is a first step towards a landscape-based approach - urgently needed to halt biodiversity loss.”

Stefan Haensel, Vice President CSR Purchasing International of Lidl Germany, stated: “Biodiversity loss poses an existential threat to our ecosystems. As part of our CSR strategy, we address our risks and drive change. Lidl together with GLOBALG.A.P. and all other partners are now proud to provide the first biodiversity focused cultivation standard for the conventional cultivation of fruit and vegetables in Europe. As a next step of our roll out more than 250 growers across Europe will be audited.” 

One year on: GGN label momentum building in Europe

The event also provided an opportunity to highlight the success of the cross-category GGN label since its launch in April 2021.The GGN label confirms that the products were farmed in line with responsible farming practices that cover food safety, environmental protection, animal welfare, social responsibility, and supply chain transparency. Found on both packed and loose fruit and vegetables, farmed seafood, flowers, and plant products, the consumer label is experiencing broad acceptance in the sector for its mission to “make responsible farming visible to consumers” and has been adopted across multiple product categories in several countries. 

The transition of existing license holders to the new-look logo has also been completed for the aquaculture and flowers and ornamentals scopes and the number of producers joining the initiative continues to rise significantly.

Momentum is now building in the most recently launched fruit and vegetables scope, with successive rollouts across Europe by Continente (Portugal), AB Vassilopoulos (Greece), and Eroski (Spain).In March 2022, Eroski became the first Spanish retailer to launch the label cross-category. Appearing on products from their own Eroski Natur brand, the retailer is now conducting a 360-degree activation campaign with consumers.Alejandro Martínez Berriochoa, Health and Sustainability Director at Eroski, noted: “At Eroski we work to permanently improve the environmental and social sustainability standards of all the processes of the value chain, from the origin of production to store operations.” 
 

About GLOBALG.A.P. 

GLOBALG.A.P. is a brand of smart farm assurance solutions developed by FoodPLUS GmbH in Cologne, Germany, with cooperation from producers, retailers, and other stakeholders from across the food industry. These solutions include a range of standards for safe, socially and environmentally responsible farming practices. The most widely used GLOBALG.A.P. standard is Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA), applicable to fruit and vegetables, aquaculture, floriculture, livestock, and more. This standard also forms the basis for the GGN label: The consumer label for certified, responsible farming and transparency. 

The GLOBALG.A.P. brand began its journey as EUREPGAP in 1997. 25 years later, over 200,000 producers have GLOBALG.A.P. certification in 134 countries. Nearly 150 team members around the world are dedicated to the mission of spreading responsible farming practices to ensure safe food for future generations. www.globalgap.org 

Contact:  
GLOBALG.A.P. c/o FoodPLUS GmbH,  
Leonie Fischer  
fischer@globalgap.org. 

The presentation of the news update can be downloaded here.