DA reviewing good practices certification system
MANILA, Philippines—The Department of Agriculture (DA) is conducting a comprehensive review to address challenges in certifying individuals and entities for good agricultural practices.
The DA issued Special Order No. 207 to create a technical working group to strengthen the Philippine Good Agricultural Practices (PhilGAP) Certification in the country.
This aims to ensure food safety and quality of agricultural products while protecting the environment through sustainable farming. It is designed to ensure that food and non-food agricultural products are produced safely and sustainably.
The TWG formed by the agency will thoroughly review existing guidelines, requirements, and procedures for issuing the PhilGAP certification.
It will fortify the certification scheme; resolve existing challenges, including the delineation of certification coverage among certifying bodies; and supersede existing guidelines as necessary.
The panel will also draft harmonized, re-engineered, and strengthened PhilGAP certification guidelines as well as consult key stakeholders such as farmers, the academe, agribusinesses, government agencies, and non-governmental organizations in updating this policy.
It is also tasked with expanding the scope of this certification program to cover additional facets, including the marketing of PhilGAP-certified farms, PhilGAP extension and communication initiatives, support mechanisms to farmers, and monitoring and evaluation framework of the certification scheme.
“Further, the concerned DA agencies shall publish their respective guidelines on the streamlined procedure, requirements, and policies in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation,” the special order read.
The Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), an attached agency of the DA, is implementing the certification scheme to facilitate the adoption of good agricultural practices with high regard for environmental protection and workers’ health, safety, and welfare.
It also seeks to produce quality and safe crops for consumers and facilitate access to Philippine agricultural products to neighboring Asean and other foreign markets.
The certification is given to the following: individual farmers, partnerships or joint ventures, cooperatives, corporations, associations or organizations, and demonstration farms.
They can use the PhilGAP Certification on their products as proof of quality and safety.
