The Canadian Horticultural Council (CHC) has announced that the CanadaGAP programme certification options B and C have now been successfully benchmarked against the requirements of the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI).
Approval means that CanadaGAP is now recognised as an equivalent to other GFSI benchmarked programmes for the primary production sector, such as SQF 1000, GlobalGAP and PrimusGFS, which many buyers require both in Canada and overseas.
CanadaGAP has been recognised by GFSI for certification options B and C and the recognition covers the common food safety requirements that run through six different commodity-specific modules.
According to CHC, the recognition allows farmers who are CanadaGAP certified to remain competitive and have continued access to markets, which are increasingly demanding that companies implement a recognised food safety programme.
'The current widespread use of this scheme in Canada... will contribute significantly to driving the enhancement of food safety in the supply chain,' said Jürgen Matern, chairman of the GFSI Board and vice-president of strategic quality management for retailer Metro AG.
