OTTAWA – The Canadian Horticultural Council (CHC)’s CanadaGAP (On-Farm Food Safety) Program is pleased to announce the addition of a new Certification Body for the program, Guelph Food Technology Centre (GFTC).
“We’re pleased to have GFTC involved in the CanadaGAP Program. Program participants will now have more choice in selecting their service provider for CanadaGAP certification,” said Heather Gale, CanadaGAP National Program Manager. GFTC joins QMI-SAI Global in the list of available certification bodies for CanadaGAP.
Third-party Certification Bodies are licensed by the CHC to provide audit and certification services for producers and packers of fresh fruit and vegetables who are enrolled in the program. Program participants must comply with food safety standards outlined by the program, and undergo and successfully complete on-farm audits in order to become CanadaGAP-certified. Several Canadian buyers – including Loblaw Companies Limited, McCain Foods Canada, Simplot Canada and Lamb-Weston – are requiring that growers become certified under the CanadaGAP Program.
New participants to CanadaGAP are asked to indicate their chosen certification body on the program enrolment form. Producers, storage operators and packers that are already CanadaGAP-certified will be contacted to confirm their selected certification body before their next scheduled audit.
For more information about enrolling in CanadaGAP and about the certification bodies providing services, click here.
About CanadaGAP
The CHC’s CanadaGAP (On-Farm Food Safety) Program consists of national food safety standards and a certification system for the safe production, storage and packing of fresh fruits and vegetables. Six commodity-specific manuals, developed by the horticultural industry and reviewed for technical soundness by Canadian government officials, are designed for growers and packers implementing Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs). The manuals contain comprehensive guidance based on a rigorous hazard analysis using HACCP principles.
About Guelph Food Technology Centre
Each year, GFTC experts audit and consult with over 1,500 businesses in the food and beverage industry. In addition, training is delivered across the globe to 26 countries in eight languages. GFTC has achieved accreditation to ISO Guide 65 and is currently licensed and approved to conduct certification to several Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) recognized standards. Visit http://www.gftc.ca.
About the Canadian Horticultural Council
The CHC is a national, not-for-profit industry association representing fruit and vegetable producers and packers.
For more information visit our website at www.canadagap.ca or contact:
Heather Gale, CanadaGAP National Program Manager
T: (613) 226-4880 Ext. 214 F: (613) 226-4497
E: hgale@hortcouncil.ca