Co-op coordinating safety certification


Group programwill mean savings for CanadaGap participants. By Judie Steeves


W


ith increasing incidents of food- borne illnesses,


British Columbia tree fruit growers are embarking on a program to gain certification through CanadaGap (Good Agricultural Practices) in order to show the consumer, retailer and government they are producing a safe product.


To save individual growers the cost of obtaining such certification, which would cost $800 to $1,400 a year, the Okanagan Tree Fruit Co-operative will become the certifying body for the Canadian Horticultural Council, which manages the program.


Members will then become certified as a group at a cost of about $360 a grower a year.


However, in order for that to be accepted, every grower-member must receive the manual and follow it each year, making changes as they occur. Bob Fisher-Fleming, safety manager for the OTFC, explains that if a portion of the farm changes its source of water, for instance, that must be assessed; or if a new lot that hasn't been part of the certification is added to the farm.


“We’ve been doing this informally for three years, so most growers will only need to make minor changes to comply. The vast majority are already in compliance,” Fisher-Fleming explained.


Probably the most difficult area is spray records, where it is important to keep track of the details, he noted. The program is part of a global food safety initiative, GlobalGap, and there are similar certification programs underway for other agricultural sectors such as vines, potatoes, melons and leafy greens, he said. “It’s about the world we live in now.


14 British Columbia FRUIT GROWER • Winter 2011-12


In other sectors they’ve already gone here. The agriculture sector is actually the


last to get on board,


and the horticulture sector is one of the higher hazard sectors, particularly in the area of leafy greens.


“It’s about traceability. It’s more possible now than ever before and we must be prepared to defend ourselves. “We’re proud of what we do and we must get that message across. We must show we’re producing a safe product,” he added.


Simplified training sessions for growers began in November and will


continue to July next year, both in groups and one-on-one.


Since the OTFC is the certifying body, staff will audit a random 200 or so growers the next year to check for compliance with the


manual for each farm. The


year after that, the OTFC’s audit system will be audited by the


national certifying body and they will visit 28 or so random farms to check for compliance.


From then on, there will be a four-year cycle, with audits every four years, said Fisher-Fleming. Consumers have put pressure on retailers to ensure all food is traceable to the farm where it was grown in case there is contamination of any food products.


This certification is to ensure tree fruit products can be tracked back to their source and to make sure food safety regulations are complied with.


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