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BULLETINS & ARTICLES Approved Supplier Programme becomes New Zealand GAP Article reproduced with permission of Vegfed NZ, www.thegrower.co.nz The New Zealand Fresh Produce Approved Supplier Programme has a new name and logo: New Zealand GAP. The changes are a result of a review of the programme’s content and branding over the last four months, to ensure it continues to meet market demands and addresses the improvements recommended by benchmarking to the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI). The programme was launched in 1999 by Vegfed to ensure New Zealand produce met food safety and quality standards. It is now New Zealand’s most widely adopted food safety and quality assurance programme, covering 80% of all domestically sold fresh vegetables, fruit and berry fruit. Russell Jordan, Chair of the programme’s Management Committee, says that incorporating GAP (Good Agricultural Practise) into the programme’s name was necessary to reflect the expansion of the programme, both locally and internationally.

“We’ve worked hard over the last two years to make it easier for our exporters to access new markets by benchmarking our programme to the Global Food Safety Initiative and EUREPGAP. This new name promotes the key benefit of the programmes to all customers in the supply chain, including consumers, and makes it clear what the programmes stands for – good agricultural practise.”

“Exporters we’ve spoken to say that the new name will make it easier to promote the programme to overseas markets, because it clearly demonstrates a commitment to best practise in regard to food production. It is clear from the outset what the logo stands for, and it reduces the need for further explanation. In addition, the GAP concept is well understood by retailers overseas who are used to the term in regard to other quality assurance programmes such as ChileGAP and EUREPGAP,” he said.

“The new name benefits Approved Suppliers selling to the local market for similar reasons.”

As well as a name change, the review has also resulted in some minor amendments to the programme content, to ensure that it continues to reflect current food production best practise. Some small changes were also required to successfully benchmark the programme to GFSI.

These changes include:

• Incorporating information and assessment on the labelling requirements set out in the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Joint Food Code;

• Incorporating more information about how to use nutrients safely and reduce the risk of nutrient leaching, and assessment around this;

• Placing more emphasis on industry quality grade standards.

Russell says that the Management Committee has worked closely with Approved Suppliers, retailers, Product Group Managers and the NZFSA to ensure that these changes are appropriate.

“Over the last four months we consulted widely with many groups to obtain their input into the programme review. Overall feedback has been very positive and as the changes are minor they won’t have a significant impact on the way Approved suppliers currently run their business.”

Although Horticulture New Zealand will begin using the new name and logo from the beginning of August, there is no requirement for Approved Suppliers to do so.

“We realise that many Approved Suppliers use the logo on their packaging, and may be holding stocks of branded material. We don’t want to impose another cost by requiring our Approved Suppliers to use the new logo immediately. However over time we expect to see a move towards adopting it, as companies recognise it’s value as a promotional tool that can reach a wider audience.”

Russell says that there will be only one New Zealand GAP logo, retailers, wholesalers, exporters and importers will be able to check what type of accreditation an Approved Supplier holds by accessing the Approved Supplier database on the website in the same way they have for the past few years.

“This will state whether an Approved Supplier is accredited to the domestic programme (e.g. a grower or a packer), or has gained equivalency to EUREPGAP or GFSI. Approved Suppliers accredited to the domestic programme will continue to supply the local market, while those benchmarked to EUREPGAP and GFSI will also be able to export to those markets that accept these programmes, or their equivalent, as a condition of supply.”

From this month, the Approved Supplier website becomes www.newzealandgap.co.nz, although suppliers will still be able to access via the old website address.