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Good Agricultural and Good Handling Practices

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GOOD AGRICULTURAL AND GOOD HANDLING PRACTICES

WSDA's Fruit and Vegetable Inspection Program is always seeking ways to improve services that will benefit the industry it serves. 

Thus, joining forces with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), as well as other states, WSDA is offering to Washington State growers, producers and shippers an auditing service throughout the food chain to verify that best practices are being followed using USDA's Guide to Minimize Microbial Food Safety Hazards for Fresh Fruits and Vegetables (GAP/GHP). A New audit standard is also available. The Produce GAP's Harmonized Food Safety Standards are also available through USDA or WSDA auditors if requested.

Overview

USDA Links

What is a USDA Good Agricultural/Good Handling Practices Audit?

The GAP/GHP Audit Verification Program is a voluntary program to demonstrate that the participating company has adhered to Food and Drug Administration's Guide to Minimize Microbial Food Safety Hazards for Fresh Fruits and Vegetables.  A successful audit shows commitment by management and employees to follow and maintain the guidelines to help minimize the potential risk for microbial contamination of the product.  

Because the program is voluntary, an audit is performed only at the request of the applicant.

The GAP/GHP Audit Verification Program audits the following:

General Questions:

  • Food Safety Program
  • Worker and Visitor Health and Hygiene Practices
  • Traceback
 

Part 1 -- Farm Review:

  • Water Usage, Sewage Treatment, Animals/Wildlife/Livestock
  • Manure and Biosolids
  • Soils -- Previous Land Use
  • Traceback
 

Part 2 -- Field Harvest and Field Packing:

  • Worker Sanitation
  • Field Harvesting and Transportation
  • Traceback
 

Part 3 -- House Packing Facility:

  • Receiving
  • Washing/Packing line
  • Worker Health and Personal Hygiene
  • Packinghouse General Housekeeping
  • Pest Control
  • Traceback
 

Part 4 -- Storage and Transportation:

  • Containers and Pallets
  • Pest Control
  • Ice
  • Storage and Temperature Control
  • Transportation and Loading
  • Traceback
 

Part 5 -- Suspended

 

Part 6 -- Wholesale Distribution/Terminal Markets:

  • Receiving
  • Storage Facility/Temperature Control
  • Pest Control
  • Repacking and Reconditioning
  • Shipping and Transportation
 

Part 7 -- Preventative Food Security Procedures:

This section covers the possibility of intentional contamination or tampering of the product.
  • Food defense plan
  • Training
  • Visitor check-in policy
  • Vehicle parking for employees and visitors
  • Movement of employees while on the premises
  • Positive identification of employees.

Requesting an Audit

If you would like to participate in this voluntary audit program, you must schedule an audit by calling your local district office.  A request for your initial audit must be made no later than two (2) weeks prior to the end of the growing/harvesting/packing season.  Participation in this program requires a signed Agreement for Participation in the GAP/GHP Audit Verification Program in addition to the completed Request for Audit Services form.

To Schedule an Audit, please call your local district office:

Yakima District Office: (509) 249-6900
Wenatchee District Office: (509) 662-6161

 

Audit Process and Scoring

Each Audit contains a series of questions pertaining to each section of the audit checklist.  Each question within an audit section has a point value assigned to it.  Auditors answer either YES, NO, NA (Not Applicable to this audit) Under the “DOC” column if there is a “D”, “R” or “P”, you must have the following; “D” indicates a document is required to show conformance to the question. An “R” indicates that a record is required to be kept showing an action was taken. A “P” indicates that a policy/SOP must be documented in the Food Safety plan in order to show conformance to the question. If the question is given a YES by the auditor, the applicant receives the total points available for that question. If the question is given a NO by the auditor, the applicant receives no point value for that question. If the question is designated as NA, the points for that questions will be removed from the total possible points for that section and there will be a new adjusted total points.

Each requested section of the audit requires 80 percent of the total points available to achieve a passing score.  Every audit must start with and pass the General Question Section of the checklist. An audit is good for one calendar year.

Required Documentation

  • A documented Food Safety Plan
  • A written standard operating procedure (SOP) -- This will explain or demonstrate how your farm or production company complies with each audit section.
  • Records for specific actions that are taken, such as regular cleaning of of food contact surfaces, refrigeration areas or transportation machinery.
  • Records of periodic and scheduled self-audits or internal audits of the program.
  • The person designated to oversee the food safety program.

Who To Contact for additional information

Abraham Armstrong - (509) 662-6161
amarmstrong@agr.wa.gov
Epifanio Rodriguez - (509) 961-2364
epifanio.rodriguez@agr.wa.gov
Fruit & Vegetable Inspection Program
Washington State Department of Agriculture


 

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