Tips for Achieving GAPC Certification: Week 7

Remediation

Remediation is the process of fixing practices that did not meet GAPC Certification Standards.

All remediation must be completed within 30 days of the monitoring visit report being submitted. Failure to timely remediate noncompliance with GAPC Certification Standards will result in denial of GAPC Certification.
The auditor will discuss any findings with growers at the conclusion of the monitoring visit to review questions missed. They will leave the grower with a monitoring visit confirmation form with instructions and contact information for where to send remediation items.
Growers will receive a detailed report of their results and a Certification Remediation Guide when the report has been summitted. If a grower provides an email address it will be instantaneous, however, if a grower does not provide an email address the report will be mailed. The remediation deadline date can be found in the monitoring visit report.
It is the growers responsibility to schedule and coordinate with the monitoring firm to complete the remediation within the 30 day time frame. All invoicing and payments for remediation is at the discretion of the monitoring firm.

Remediation Processes

There are six different types of remediation a grower could be asked to complete depending on the non-compliance issue. Detailed instructions on how to remediate any remediable issue can be found in the GAPC Certification Compliance Guide and the Certification Remediation Guide provided via your preferred method of correspondence.

Record Review (RR): If record review is required for remediation, the grower must collect all missing records and organize the information using the GAPC record templates or the grower’s own record keeping method. Once all missing records have been prepared and organized, the grower can send them to the designated remediator for the audit firm. Successful remediation is at the auditor’s discretion.
Record Review with Corrective Action Plan (RR CAP): In addition to the Record Review, a Corrective Action Plan may also be required. This indicates that the grower must submit, in addition to the appropriate documentation, a report/document that indicates why the grower did not follow the GAPC standard and how the issue will be corrected in the future. A CAP template can be found here.
Record Review with Picture (RRP): If record review with picture is required for remediation, the grower must take a picture of the remediated item(s). Once all pictures have been prepared and organized, the grower can send them to the designated remediator. Successful remediation is at the auditor’s discretion.
Non-Remediable (NR): There will be some issues on the farm that are simply not remediable, such as rotating crops or planting disease resistant varieties. Non-Remediable issues are opportunities for improvement the following year. Critical NR practices will result in the grower not being Certified.
Visual Inspection (VI): If a Visual Inspection is required, the goal should be to find a long-term solution to the issue as opposed to a temporary fix. The grower should make all necessary changes or fixes that require an auditor to revisit their farm. Then the grower can contact the auditor who visited their farm to schedule a follow-up visit. In some cases, the Visual Inspection for remediation may include Worker Interviews.
Visual Inspection with CAP (VI CAP): In addition to the Visual Inspection, a Corrective Action Plan may also be required. This indicates that the grower must submit, in addition to the follow-up visit, a report that indicates why the grower did not follow the GAPC standard, a timeline of how the issue was fixed, and what the solution was. Worker Interviews may also be included if necessary.

Non-Remediable Standards

As you read above there are some standards that are not remediable. These standards unfortunately cannot be fixed and depending on your score and whether or not it is a critical standard, may prevent you from becoming GAPC Certified. Learn more about what standards are not remediable in the GAPC Certification Compliance Guide.

Do I need to remediate everything?

Audit: To achieve a passing score for Certification growers must obtain a 100% score on all the Critical Standards and reach a minimum 75% score on the
Additional Standards. If you have missed a Critical standard remediation is REQUIRED. If you have missed an Additional Standard it depends on the score for Additional Standards. You may need to remediate an Additional Standard to achieve the minimum 75% score.
Site Visit: To achieve a passing score for Certification growers must obtain a 100% score on all the Critical Standards. Growers will not be scored on Additional Standards in their Site Visit. If you have missed a Critical Standard remediation is REQUIRED.

Questions about Payment?

Certification will not be issued until the monitoring firm confirms payment for the monitoring visit. For any payment-related questions, please contact the monitoring firm directly.