GlobalGAP has hit back at accusations it has been undermined by allegations of worker abuse in the Peruvian mango trade.
A report by Dutch research organisation SOMO last week implicated several large Peruvian exporters in allegations over working hours, wages and equal opportunities.
The International Mango Organization (IMO) called on GlobalGAP to “step up to the plate” on the “thorny issue” of workers’ rights in an online article entitled How Relevant Is GlobalGAP Now?
But GlobalGAP chairman Nigel Garbutt spoke out to defend the organisation, stating that GlobalGAP certification is not a social audit and those implicated in the report were not covered by its social assessment add-on, GRASP.
The voluntary GRASP module was developed between 2005 and 2010 and is intended to raise awareness of social issues in production and identify areas for improvement. It is not yet validated for use in Peru but Garbutt confirmed it could be available within three months.
The IMO questioned the use of third-party certifiers. Its executive director Will Cavan told FPJ: “If underdeveloped nations want equal access, they must comply with the rules. GlobalGAP is going to have to take a more direct [hands on] approach to the whole certification process rather than delegating to third-party certifiers.
“GlobalGAP is a necessary and wonderful concept. Unfortunately, all it takes is one bad actor left unpunished to ruin its credibility. GlobalGAP must have ‘teeth’ in order to be taken seriously.”
Garbutt responded: “We firmly believe in independent third-party certification carried out by professional audit companies who use correctly trained auditors monitored according to international rules. They also undergo additional integrity checks by a unique dedicated team in the GlobalGAP secretariat. For GRASP assessments, we also use the expertise of specialists in the NGO community to validate standards on a country level.”
Cavan also said supermarkets and importers may have their own compliance officers or third party auditor at source if abuses were manifest in the long term.
