3 STEPS TO EASILY IMPLEMENT FRESH PRODUCE TRACEABILITY COMPLIANCE:
1. Purchase farmsoft
2. Implement farmsoft
3. Use farmsoft
Implement fresh produce compliance with farmsoft in 3 easy steps. Fresh produce compliance - The ultimate fresh produce compliance guide. Farmsoft enforces fresh produce traceability and food safety compliance.
7 Steps to implement fresh produce compliance
Identify required standards
Use of pesticides in fresh produce farming
Contamination compliance
Marketing standards compliance
Certification
Fresh produce labelling
Cold chain compliance
This example uses the European Union as an example target market for fresh produce food safety compliance. Europe is very demanding about food safety, which is why dealing with fresh agricultural products is subject to various legal and other buyer requirements. But there are also opportunities to distinguish yourself by applying additional or niche market quality standards. This document provides an overview of the most common requirements and standards, as well as the specific requirements that apply to niche markets such as organic or Fair trade fruit and vegetables.
1. Identify required standards
Determine which standards apply to your fresh produce enterprise. These are usually determined by the destination market place of your fresh produce. For example, if your fresh produce will be sold in the European Union then EU standards will be set by the European Commission and will include such as EU Fruits & Vegetables standards.
Which legal and non-legal requirements must your product comply with?
When exporting fresh fruit and vegetables to Europe, you have to comply with the requirements below. These requirements can be categorized as:
food safety;
product quality;
social, environmental and business compliance.
For a full list of legal requirements, please consult the EU Trade Help-desk.
2. Use of pesticide in fresh produce farming
To avoid health and environmental risks, the European Union (EU) has set maximum residue levels (MRLs) for pesticides in and on food products. Products containing more pesticides than allowed will be withdrawn from the European market.
Note that buyers in several Member States such as the United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands and Austria use MRLs which are stricter than the MRLs laid down in European legislation. Supermarket chains are the strictest and demand 33% to 70% of the legal MRL.
More and more buyers ask for upfront information about your pesticide spray programs and records. Shipments are checked before they are sent to the retailer. Pesticide management takes a lot of responsibility on your part as a producer or exporter.
Tips:
Assess the organic market potential for your specific product. Inform yourself well, because implementing organic production and becoming certified can be expensive and time-consuming.
Find importers that specialise in organics through trade fairs such as Biofach or Fruit Logistica and company directories such as the International directory of organic food wholesale & supply companies (Organic-bio). Organic importers often play an active role in advisory and guidance of producers.
Read more about organic farming on an informative website of the European Commission on organic farming.
New legislation for organic
The European Commission made a proposal for new organic legislation in 2014 and a new set of rules are scheduled to be implemented in July 2020. According to the European Council, this new agreement aims to guarantee fair competition, prevent fraud and improve consumer confidence. Importers have already started to implement the stricter regulations.
In general, organic regulation and testing are expected to become rigorous. Traces of unauthorised substances can result in a direct withdrawal of Organic certification.
Implement fresh produce compliance with farmsoft in 3 easy steps. Fresh produce compliance - The ultimate fresh produce compliance guide. Farmsoft enforces fresh produce traceability and food safety compliance.
Implement fresh produce compliance with farmsoft in 3 easy steps. Fresh produce compliance - The ultimate fresh produce compliance guide. Farmsoft enforces fresh produce traceability and food safety compliance.
Implement fresh produce compliance with farmsoft in 3 easy steps. Fresh produce compliance - The ultimate fresh produce compliance guide. Farmsoft enforces fresh produce traceability and food safety compliance.