Canadian Horticultural Council
OFFS Program in BC
COALITION OF ORGANIC
ASSOCIATIONS OF BC
February 21, 2009
Sheri Nielson,
BC Vegetable Marketing Commission
1
BC Vegetable
Marketing Commission
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Active participant in development of the CHC National
On-Farm Food Safety Program
Education, draft manuals, annual reports and audits
provided to growers since 2002.
All producers, registered with BC Veg, are utilizing
the CHC manuals specific to their crops and are being
audited to program standards
CHC Member Organizations
In BC
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BC. Blueberry Council
B.C. Cranberry Marketing Commission
B.C. Fresh
B.C. Fruit Growers' Association
B.C. Greenhouse Growers' Association
B.C. Potato and Vegetable Growers'
Association
B.C. Raspberry Growers Association /
Raspberry Industry Development Council
B.C. Tree Fruits Ltd.
CHC Member Organizations
In BC (cont.)
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B.C. Vegetable Marketing Commission
Fraserland Organics Inc.
Fraser Valley Strawberry Growers' Association
Interior Vegetable Marketing Cooperative
Agency
Island Vegetable Co-op Association
Vancouver Island Produce
What is the CHC’s Role in On-Farm Food
Safety?
… To provide the tools to enable
and facilitate the ability of
members to respond and
compete in the marketplace
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CHC Mandate
Food Safety
To deliver a realistic, cost effective, voluntary,
market driven program for and to members:
– Based on member input and needs
– Technically sound and credible
– Created through a transparent process
– Founded on the best available science
– Buyer recognized standard
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Government Recognition
of the CHC Program
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CFIA is the government agency mandated to
ensure credibility and confirm technical
soundness for national food safety programs
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The official recognition process is led by the CFIA
and involves provincial government
representatives
Where We Started
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General Guidelines released in 2000
Divided into crop groupings to address
commodity-specific risks and achieve
government recognition of the program’s
technical soundness
Active Working Groups established based on
crop/commodity groupings
HACCP Models and Manuals (8 groupings)
Commodity Groupings
Bulb
and Root
Leafy
Vegetables
Cruciferae
▪ Garlic
▪ Lettuce
▪ Beet
▪ Carrot
▪ Onion
▪ Radish
▪ Parsnip
▪ Rutabaga
▪ Turnip
▪ Shallot
▪ Other
▪ Spinach
▪ Leafy herbs
(parsley, etc.)
▪ Broccoli
▪ Cauliflower
▪ Cabbage
▪ Green onion
▪ Brussels
sprouts
▪ Endive
▪ Leek
▪ Celery, Fennel
▪ Rhubarb
(Horseradish,
Sweet potato,
etc.)
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Asparagus,
Sweet Corn &
Legumes
▪ Asparagus
▪ Bean
▪ Pea
▪ Sweet corn
Fruiting
Vegetables
▪ Peppers
▪ Eggplant
▪ Melons
▪ Pumpkin
▪ Squash
▪ Cucumber
▪ Tomato (field)
Potatoes
▪ Potatoes
Commodity Groupings
Small Fruit
▪ Strawberries
▪ Raspberries
▪ Blackberries
▪ Blueberries
▪ Saskatoons
▪ Currants
▪ Cranberries
▪ Other berries
(gooseberries,
elderberries)
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Tree and
Vine Fruit
▪ Cherry
▪ Apple
▪ Peach
▪ Pear
▪ Plum
▪ Grape
▪ Other tree
and vine fruit
(e.g., kiwi,
quince)
Greenhouse
Production
▪ Tomato
▪ Sweet Peppers
▪ Cucumbers
▪ Eggplant
▪ Lettuce
▪ Herbs
▪ Edible Flowers
HACCP-Based Program
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Complete hazard analysis (physical,
chemical, microbiological)
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Individual growers and packers do not need
to develop their own operation-specific
HACCP plan
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Can simply start using the Manual knowing
that a complete hazard analysis has been
done
HACCP-Based Program (cont’d)
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Generic hazard analysis (by crop grouping)
completed according to HACCP principles
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Pre-requisite programs (6):
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Premises, Equipment, Personnel Training, Sanitation and Pest
Control, Transportation and Storage, Recall Program
Use Codex Decision Tree to determine adequate
control measures
Benefits of OFFS Manuals
•
•
•
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Easy for the grower to implement
A documentation package to help record
practices on-farm/in packing sheds
without having to create a site-specific
HACCP plan and Standard Operating
Procedures
Record-keeping Forms (templates)
OFFS Manuals
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A complete record of steps growers are taking
to keep production safe
Specific procedures vs. general guidelines
Checklists instead of writing out procedures
An educational tool
Appendices:
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(cont’d)
Detailed information on key topics
(water testing, composting)
Recall Program
Crop
Crop
Group
Producer and
Producer
Packer and
Packer
Manual
Pilots
HACCP MODEL
HP
Group
Manual
RP
Tree and
Version 3.0 2008 COMPLETE
2006
Draft 1
COMPLETE
A OR Bulb
Vineand
FruitRoot
DO
COMPLETE
Draft 2.0 2008
Leafy
2006 Draft 1
COMPLETE
C UD Leafy
C
COMPLETE
2008
COMPLETE
20063.0
Draft
1
C EU Greenhouse
Greenhouse Version
RC
P E Potato
COMPLETE
Version 5.1 2008
COMPLETE
Potato
MR
COMPLETE
Draft 2.0 2008
M A Small
Fruit
COMPLETE
2006 Draft 1
Small
Fruit
N
O UMA BulbTree
Draft 2.0 2008
COMPLETE
and and
Root
2005 Draft 1
COMPLETE
A
Vine Fruit
D LN Vegetables
Fruiting
Draft 2.0 2008
COMPLETE
2007
Fruiting
2007 Draft 1
U Vegetables
E A Asparagus,
2007
COMPLETE
Asparagus,
Draft
2.0
2008
2007 Draft 1
Corn and
L Sweet
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Corn and
Legumes
L Sweet
Pilots
Technical
Technical
Review
Review
COMPLETE
Early 2008
In progress
Early 2008
2007
COMPLETE
COMPLETE
COMPLETE
2007
In progress
2007
Combined
submission
2008
In progress
2008
A National Approach to
Producer/Packer Training
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•
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National training materials package for growers,
packers and storage intermediaries
Print and electronic resources
Train-the-Trainer approach
• Trainer’s kit
Resources on CHC web site
• Guidance for using manuals
• How to complete the forms
CHC OFFS Certification
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Beyond standards development
Effective September 2008, the CHC offers a
program to assess and certify
producer/packer conformance to the CHC
OFFS requirements
Based on updated Audit Checklist (Version
3.0 2008)
CHC OFFSP Certification Options
•Important:
All Options include some form of AUDIT ACTIVITY annually
Option
Option A
Components
Four-year Cycle
• Sworn Supplier
Declarations and SelfAssessment Checklists
• Random Audits
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Implications
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Option B
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Group Certification
• Internal QMS
• Internal Audits
• Random Sampling
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Option C
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Benchmarking Option
• Annual On-Farm Visit
•
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Canadian Horticultural Council
Audit Activity every year
Rigorous approach based on
international models/precedents
Meets government requirements for
OFFSP recognition
Lowest cost option
Audit Activity every year
• Rigorous approach
• Based on GlobalGAP (Group)
Benchmarking international
equivalencies
• Annual Audits (may combine full and
partial audits - TBD)
• Higher cost to suppliers
Option A: Cost Implications
Producer/Packer’s Total Average Program Cost
(over 4-year Cycle)
Half Day Audit
Program Fee ($500/ year)
Full Day Audit
$2,000
$2,000
Audit
420
840
Travel (average)
243
243
Total Cost over 4 years
$2,663
$3,083
Annual Average Cost
$665
$770
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Canadian Horticultural Council
Option C: Cost Implications
Producer/Packer’s Total Average Program Cost
(Annual Audit)
Half Day Audit
Annual Program Fee
Full Day Audit
$250
$250
Audits
420
840
Travel (average)
243
243
$913
$1,333
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Producer/Packer’s Total Average Program Cost
(Annual Audit)
Annual Average Cost
Non-Member
Premium: Add $1,500 for CHC OFFSP Materials,
including annual updates.
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Canadian Horticultural Council
How can the CHC and its members
afford this Program?
The CHC is pursuing all possible options to
reduce and share costs, recognizing that OFFS
initiatives are a public good
 Seeking partner support
 The CHC will seek bridge
financing, an interest-free
loan or seed money from
government, loan guarantees,
or financing from other programs or sources, or a
combination of approaches
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Canadian Horticultural Council
FUTURE OUTLOOK
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International credibility of CHC OFFFSP
Benchmarking against GlobalGAP and GFSI
requirements in 2009
CHC in a position to influence import practices by
providing expertise on equivalency ratings used by
importers
Potential for partnerships and contractual
agreements between countries and/or
organizations, such as CPMA
Resources
Updated CHC Web site:
www.hortcouncil.ca/FShome.htm
Provincial associations (CHC
members) – contact point for:
 distribution of Manuals
 administration of OFI funding
 local support, questions
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Special thanks to Heather Gale, Food Safety Coordinator,
Canadian Horticultural Council for the use of CHC
presentation slides.
We gratefully acknowledge project
funding and support provided by the Government of Canada
through:
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
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Canadian Horticultural Council