What is GLOBALG.A.P.?
GLOBALG.A.P. is an international certification system that supports safe, responsible, and traceable practices in agriculture, aquaculture, and floriculture worldwide. This system provides assurance to producers in food safety, environmental sustainability, worker health, and animal welfare, and offers solutions supported by digital platforms.
IFA (Integrated Farm Assurance) is GLOBALG.A.P.’s flagship standard, meaning the most important and fundamental standard. This standard focuses on responsible practices across different production sectors and thus frames the system.
On a global scale, GLOBALG.A.P. covers tens of thousands of producers, numerous certification bodies, and international supply chain stakeholders; it is also supported by platforms and technical working groups that enable national applications in multiple countries.
Global Scale Data
The GLOBALG.A.P. System has wide-ranging applications globally:
More than 190 certification bodies (CB) worldwide are authorized to audit GLOBALG.A.P. standards; through these bodies, certification is implemented in over 130 countries.
IFA provides an integrated approach and indicates that 2.8 million metric tons of seafood are certified under GLOBALG.A.P. annually.
The GLOBALG.A.P. Integrity Program carries out hundreds of site inspections and complaint management annually to ensure system reliability and enhances brand credibility in a system covering around 200,000 producers.
General Explanation of the IFA Standard
IFA (Integrated Farm Assurance) is GLOBALG.A.P.’s core production assurance standard applied at the farm level. This standard provides a holistic and responsible production approach covering food safety, environment, biodiversity, animal health and welfare, worker health and safety, production processes, and traceability. With its adaptable structure for different production sectors (e.g., fruit & vegetables, aquaculture, flowers), IFA forms the core of the GLOBALG.A.P. system.
IFA v6
The most recent version, IFA v6, is defined as GLOBALG.A.P.’s flagship standard and, as of 2024, includes updated criteria for different scopes such as fruit & vegetables, ornamentals, and aquaculture.
This version provides producers with clearer, performance-based audit processes while being structured to support the training and audit consistency of certification bodies (CBs). The transition processes for CBs are regularly updated through technical bulletins.
IFA v6 for Fruit and Vegetables: Two Parallel and Equivalent Editions
IFA v6 for fruit and vegetable producers is offered in two parallel and equivalent editions: IFA v6 Smart and IFA v6 GFS. Both editions have equal validity; the only difference lies in certificate recognition and certification preferences (globalgap.org). This structure allows producers to choose between a certification option recognized by GFSI or not, depending on their needs; however, in terms of content and scope, both editions are identical.
Chain of Custody (CoC)
This system ensures that GLOBALG.A.P. certified products can be safely and transparently traced throughout the supply chain. The standard guarantees the proper segregation, identification, and traceability of products. CoC certification covers not only production capacity but also the chain of assurance reflected on the product label, enhancing consumer confidence.
Within CoC, both physical and record-based procedures are implemented to preserve the authenticity of GLOBALG.A.P.-labeled products from producer to shelf. This system guarantees that products are linked to the GGN label and aligned with logistics processes.
GGN (GLOBALG.A.P. Number)
GGN is a unique 13-digit identification number assigned to each producer or producer group within the GLOBALG.A.P. system. This number is used for certificate verification, ensuring traceability, and CoC verification. The GLOBALG.A.P. IT platform provides the possibility to directly confirm certificate and production information through the GGN.
Add-ons
On top of the core assurance scope of IFA, add-on solutions are available that allow producers to provide deeper assurance in specific areas:
GRASP: A social risk-focused add-on that assesses farm workers’ health, safety, and welfare.
SPRING: A technical add-on supporting sustainable irrigation and groundwater use.
Other add-ons include BioDiversity, FSMA PSR, NON-GM, and TR4 Biosecurity, which are more specifically targeted.
These add-ons allow producers to customize their IFA scope according to their needs and act in compliance with additional responsibility criteria demanded by consumers.
Integrity Program
The GLOBALG.A.P. Integrity Program, launched in 2008, is a pioneering integrity program in the food certification sector. This program ensures the reliability of the system through mechanisms such as hundreds of on-site audits every year, complaint and appeal management, and monitoring the performance of certification bodies.
The program protects the reputation of the GLOBALG.A.P. brand by supporting CB consistency, fair audit practices, and transparent communication. It also provides confidence to producers, retailers, and supply chain institutions and sustains audit quality.
GLOBALG.A.P. Certification in Türkiye (General Overview)
Efforts for GLOBALG.A.P. certification in Türkiye are carried out through national technical working groups (NTWGs) and certification bodies. NTWGs ensure that GLOBALG.A.P. standards are adapted to local legislation and operational conditions; they contribute to developing a suitable national interpretation guideline (NIG) for the country. In this way, producers in Türkiye can work with a system that harmonizes global standards with local practices.