Effective April 1, 2020, the CanadaGAP Auditor Training course will be mandatory for CanadaGAP-certified group internal auditors conducting on-site audits of group members enrolled in Option A3 and Option B.
The upcoming changes to the group certification requirements for internal auditors will be reflected in the next version of the CanadaGAP Program Management Manual (see Appendices III.1 and III.2).
We are sending this notice ahead of the effective date (April 1, 2020) to allow group internal auditors to fulfill the requirement on time.
Upcoming Changes in Appendices III.1 and III.2 – Section 4.2: Qualification Requirements
Effective April 1, 2020, the requirements will state:
4.2 Qualification Requirements (ref: Annex II.1, 2)
4.2.1 Formal Qualifications, Training and Technical Skills
4.2.1.1 For On-Site Audits of Group Members – Internal Auditors:
(vii) It is strongly recommended that Internal auditors must:
- have successfully completed the CanadaGAP Auditor Training course including passing the exam, and
- are maintaining maintain competency by participating in auditor refresher training and testing offered by available through CanadaGAP.
The current version of Component 3 of the CanadaGAP Program Management Manual is available on the website under the ‘Becoming Certified’ tab. Select the last item entitled “Management System Manual”. An updated version will be published before the above changes take effect in 2020.
Note: All CanadaGAP-certified operations, regardless of certification option, must complete an annual internal audit. The changes above are not related to fulfilling this requirement in Section 24.2 of the CanadaGAP Food Safety manuals.
If you have any questions, contact the CanadaGAP office by emailing info@canadagap.ca, or by calling 613-829-4711.