Farm assurance

Farm assurance is product certification for agricultural products that emphasises the principles of quality assurance. The emphasis on quality assurance means that, in addition to product inspection, farm assurance schemes may include standards and certification for traceability, production methods, transport, and supplies.Cite web
url=http://www.igd.com/CIR.asp?menuid=115&cirid=1354
title=Farm Assurance factsheet
publisher=Institute of Grocery Distribution
date=2004-12-07
place=UK
accessdate=2008-07-22
quote=Over 78,000 farmers and growers in the UK are farm assured, accounting for between 65% and 90% of output in the main commodity sectors...Farm assurance is now one link in a chain of assurance, which covers areas such as agricultural inputs (e.g. feed); transport and processing.]

In the United Kingdom and Australia, the major farm assurance programmes are based on a quality management system for food safety that originated with the US space agency NASA, known as Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP).Cite web
url=http://www.dairyaustralia.com.au/content/view/386/317/
title=On Farm Quality Assurance
publisher=Dairy Australia
accessdate=2008-07-22
quote= All dairy companies require their dairy farmer suppliers to implement on farm HACCP based Quality Assurance Programs.] [Cite web
url=http://www.redtractor.org.uk/download/rt_standards_pigs.pdf
title=THE CERTIFICATION STANDARD
quote=Annex 4 sets out the seven principles of HACCP] In these and other countries, assurance is underpinned by principles and standards for good manufacturing practice (GMP), good agricultural practice (GAP), good hygienic practice and good trade practice.Citation
url=http://www.date.hu/efita2003/centre/pdf/1108.pdf
title=ANALYSIS OF THE INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION LEVEL IN DIFFERENT QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS IN THE AGRI-FOOD SECTOR
last=Krieger
first=Stephanie
first2=Gerhard
last2=Schiefer
place=University of Bonn, Germany
volume=EFITA 2003 Conference, 5-9. July 2003, Debrecen, Hungary
page=619. “The basis for any quality system is good practice, especially good manufacturing practice, good agricultural practice, good hygienic practice and good trade practice.”]

Examples of farm assurance schemes include:
* organic certification
* Red Tractor mark, a UK quality assurance programme for animal products and crops [Cite web
url=http://www.redtractor.org.uk/site/rt_page.php?section_id=2&page_id=48
title=Read about AFS
publisher=Red Tractor Assured Food Standards
accessdate=2008-07-16]
*Freedom Food, animal welfare assurance from the RSPCA [Cite news
publisher=RSPCA via Politics.co.uk
date=2008-07-14
title=Press release: RSPCA: Freedom food - record numbers are looking for the logo
url=http://www.politics.co.uk/opinion-formers/press-releases/rspca-freedom-food-record-numbers-are-looking-the-logo-%241231630%24366366.htm&cid=0&usg=AFQjCNG6X0EAy5LEkN872CG5abRw0JWhQg
accessdate=2008-07-16]
* Grainsafe, Indiana-based programme [Cite web
url=http://cobweb.ecn.purdue.edu/~grainlab/GrainSafe/index.htm
title=Grainsafe
publisher=Purdue University
place=Indiana
accessdate=2008-07-22]
* IKB (Integrated chain control system), Netherlands programme
* the Australian dairy industry's range of HAACP-based programmes

In 2004, 65% of United Kingdom farm production was farm assured, and by 2006, £6 billion worth of food was packed annually under the United Kingdom's Red Tractor farm assurance mark, including over 90% of the country's pig and dairy production. [Cite web
url=http://66.102.9.104/search?q=cache:4svaOzmxK94J:statistics.defra.gov.uk/esg/indicators/d107_data.htm+farm+assurance&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=8&gl=uk
title=SFFS Indicators - 1.07 Farm assurance schemes (data sheet)
publisher=UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
accessdate=2008-07-16]

Some farm assurance schemes are given legal force, either by use of trademarks or by oversight by government regulators of agriculture and food standards. While mostly associated with food production, farm assurance can be applied to other agricultural products, such as textiles, flowers, tobacco and biofuels.

In order to obtain farm product certification, assurance may be required for farm supplies. For example, the UK's Red Tractor scheme is supported by assurance programmes for fodder (UFAS, FEMAS) and fertiliser (FIAS). [Cite web
url=http://www.agindustries.org.uk/content.template/30/30/Home/Home/Home.mspx
title=Trade assurance
publisher=Agricultural Industries Confederation
accessdate=2008-07-16] [Cite web
url=http://www.thepaigroup.com/default.aspx?P=AnimalFeed
title=The Assurance of Animal Feedingstuffs – A Brief Outline
accessdate=2008-07-16
publisher=Product Authentication International, a certifying body]

Other quality standards

Other widely used agricultural quality standards are based entirely on product inspection, and do not rely on other aspects of quality assurance. One example of such a programme is the United States Quality Standards for grading, certification and verification: the USDA beef grades depend on physical attributes of the meat, plus the age of the animal. [Cite web
url=http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/ams.fetchTemplateData.do?template=TemplateG&navID=FindaStandardGradingCertificationandVerification&rightNav1=FindaStandardGradingCertificationandVerification&topNav=&leftNav=GradingCertificationandVerfication&page=Standards&resultType=
title=Grading, certification and verification: USDA Quality Standards
quote=For example, Beef quality standards are based on attributes such as marbling (the amount of fat interspersed with lean meat), color, firmness, texture, and age of the animal, for each grade
date=
accessdate=2008-07-22
publisher=USDA]

ee also

*Certified Naturally Grown
*Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points
*Quality Assurance International
*Soil Association

References

Further reading

* Citation
author = Luning, edited by P. A.; Devlieghere, F.; Verhé, R.
year = 2006
title = Safety in the agri-food chain
isbn = 9076998779
publisher = Wageningen Academic Publishers
location = Wageningen, The Netherlands
oclc = 60375200

External links

* [http://www.igd.com/CIR.asp?menuid=115&cirid=1354 UK Farm Assurance Factsheet] from the Institute of Grocery Distribution
* [http://66.102.9.104/search?q=cache:4svaOzmxK94J:statistics.defra.gov.uk/esg/indicators/d107_data.htm+farm+assurance&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=8&gl=uk Farm assurance statistics] from the United Kingdom government
* [http://www.defra.gov.uk/FARM/trade/assurance/index.htm Farming assurance schemes and standards] – UK DEFRA
* [http://www.freedomfood.co.uk/ Freedom Food] – UK scheme from RSPCA
* [http://www.redtractor.org.uk/ Red Tractor Assured Food Standards] – umbrella programme for several major UK schemes
* [http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Factsheets/Inspection_&_Grading/index.asp Inspection & Grading - What Are The Differences?] – Fact sheet from the United States federal Food Safety and Inspection Service
* Citation
url=http://www.aciar.gov.au/publication/PR100
title=Quality Assurance in Agricultural Produce
authors=G I Johnson, Le Van To, Nguyen Duy Duc & M C Webb
isbn=0 642 44939 2
date=2000
publisher=Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (125 papers presented at the 19th ASEAN/1st APEC Seminar on Postharvest Technology held in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam from 9 to 12 November 1999. PDF downloads.)
* Citation
url=http://www.ifama.org/conferences/2004Conference/Papers/Baines1095.pdf
title=HACCP at the Farm Level – The Missing Link in Food Safety & Security
date=2004
*Citation
url=http://www.date.hu/efita2003/centre/pdf/1108.pdf
title=ANALYSIS OF THE INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION LEVEL IN DIFFERENT QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS IN THE AGRI-FOOD SECTOR
last=Krieger
first=Stephanie
first2=Gerhard
last2=Schiefer
place=University of Bonn, Germany
volume=EFITA 2003 Conference, 5-9. July 2003, Debrecen, Hungary
page=619