GLOBALG.A.P started in 1997 because the retail sector in Europe became aware of the growing concern with regard to food safety, the impact on the environment, on the health and well-being of workers. That is why they decided to establish a series of rules and joint procedures and created an independent certification which would accredit the Good Agricultural Practices (G.A.P for its acronym in English).
As the years passed, certification became increasingly known in the world and is currently applied in more than 120 countries on all continents.
The GLOBALG.A.P certifies the entire production process of the product, from the seed control points to the completion of the production process. The importance for retailers is that it gives them certainty about the sanitary conditions of the products coming from the field, and for consumers means that the food has reached acceptable levels of safety and quality, and has been sustainably produced.
But why is this certification important for producers in our country? Peru has increased its exports of fresh fruits and vegetables at an extraordinary rate (between 2000 and 2016 it grew 22% on average), being the main engine of the growth of agricultural exports (the second most important exporting sector after the mining industry).
Our main buyers of fresh agricultural products are developed countries, with North America in the first place and the European countries in the second position. These countries are very demanding with the productive processes of the food they import and the quality of the products they consume, so this certification is an aid to entry into these markets. An example of this is that because the GLOBALG.A.P. is promoted by the Euro Retailer Group (EUREP) which represents the most important leading supermarket chains in the food sector in Europe, many of them began to demand that their suppliers have a good reputation and the proper certifications.
Given the importance of the certification, AGAP has been working together with the GLOBALG.A.P for several years and since 2015 has assumed the leadership in Peru of the National Technical Working Group (GTTN) Fruits and vegetables. The technical working groups have the objective of helping the countries in the application of the universal standards of the GLOBALG.A.P at the local level. Their main product is the guide known as the National Interpretation Guide (NIG for its acronym in English) where they reflect how to implement the criteria and control points of GLOBALG.A.P according to the regulations in force in the country. This guide is intended to be used by certifying companies and producers worldwide.
May 29, 2017
By: Mary Gabriela Capcha, Analyst of Economic Studies and Market
