GLOBALG.A.P. Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) Standard v6
GLOBALG.A.P. INTEGRATED FARM ASSURANCE (IFA) STANDARD v6 is the world's leading private-sector pre-farm-gate food safety + agricultural quality + sustainability + social-practice assurance scheme published by FoodPLUS GmbH (Cologne, Germany) - a wholly-owned subsidiary of GLOBALG.A.P. ASSOCIATION. KEY VERSIONS: (a) v5.2 + v5.3 (2017-2022 transition); (b) IFA v6 launched September 2022 + transition period completed 2024; (c) v6.1 amended December 2024 with technical updates + clarifications + remediation handling; (d) IFA v6 SMART launched 2024 as modular sub-scheme allowing risk-based + audit-frequency-flexible certification for established producers. SCOPE: covers PRE-FARM-GATE production for (a) CROPS - fruits + vegetables + nuts + flowers + ornamentals + combinable crops + green coffee + plants + plant propagation material; (b) LIVESTOCK - cattle + sheep + dairy + pigs + poultry + turkey + ducks; (c) AQUACULTURE - fish + crustaceans + molluscs + multi-species farming. SCHEME STRUCTURE: modular hierarchy (i) ALL FARM BASE (AF) - cross-cutting requirements for all subscopes (Management + Workers + Environment + Traceability + Food Safety + GFSI hooks); (ii) BASE STANDARD per subscope (CROPS BASE CB + LIVESTOCK BASE LB + AQUACULTURE BASE AB); (iii) PRODUCT-SPECIFIC STANDARDS (Fruit + Vegetables FV + Combinable Crops + Tea + Coffee + Aquaculture species + etc.) layering on top. Producer certifies one or more product-specific scopes + automatically commits to AF + relevant Base. CONTROL POINTS + COMPLIANCE CRITERIA (CPCCs): each control point has (a) Major Must - 100 percent compliance required + no exception; (b) Minor Must - 95 percent compliance threshold; (c) Recommendation - non-binding; remediation period for Minor Must non-compliance + revocation for repeated Major Must. SUB-PROGRAMS + ADD-ONS: GRASP (GLOBALG.A.P. Risk Assessment on Social Practice) - voluntary social-practice add-on; SPRING (Sustainable Program for Irrigation and Groundwater Use) - water sustainability; PLANET PRO PROGRAM - environmental excellence; FOREST RESPONSIBLE PROGRAM; ALBERT HEIJN PROTOCOL + retailer-specific add-ons. GFSI RECOGNITION: IFA v6 is RECOGNIZED under the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) Benchmarking Requirements + recognized internationally by major food retailers + brands (Tesco + Walmart + Carrefour + Lidl + Aldi + Ahold Delhaize + Sainsbury + Costco + Coles + Woolworths + Whole Foods + many more). CERTIFICATION: by accredited Certification Bodies (~140 CBs globally) operating under ISO/IEC 17065 + GLOBALG.A.P. accreditation criteria; certification valid 1 year + annual surveillance audit + unannounced audits; certificates published in IT system. CIPRO + 2024-2025 PIPELINE: digital transformation + IT-system updates + AI risk-based audit selection + remote audits + sustainability indicators expansion + carbon + biodiversity + water-stewardship integration + alignment with EU Green Deal + Farm-to-Fork Strategy + CSRD ESRS sustainability reporting. PUBLICATION + LICENSE: IFA v6 standard document is COPYRIGHTED by FoodPLUS GmbH + freely available via globalgap.org for producers + certification bodies (with attribution); structure publicly known via globalgap.org publications + GFSI Benchmarking Requirements + industry publications. COORDINATION: GLOBALG.A.P. coordinates with GFSI + FSSC 22000 (verified separately) + BRCGS + IFS + SQF + Codex Alimentarius + ISO 22000 + ISO 9001 + Rainforest Alliance + Fair Trade + UTZ (merged into Rainforest Alliance) + Sustainable Agriculture Initiative (SAI) + Fairtrade.
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Framework Domains (7)
GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6: 2024-2025 Pipeline, EU Green Deal, CSRD Coordination and Sectoral Standards
| Code | Title |
|---|---|
| GGAP-2024-2025-Pipeline-EUGreenDeal-CSRD-AI | GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6 2024-2025 Pipeline: EU Green Deal, CSRD, EUDR, AI and Sustainability |
| GGAP-Crosswalk-GFSI-FSSC22000-BRCGS-IFS-SQF | GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6 Crosswalk to GFSI, FSSC 22000, BRCGS, IFS, SQF, ISO 22000 and Codex |
| GGAP-Sectoral-Geographic-Adoption-200K-130Countries | GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6 Sectoral + Geographic Adoption (~200K Producers in 130+ Countries) |
| GGAP-Status-FoodPLUS-Governance-StakeholderEngagement | GLOBALG.A.P. Status, FoodPLUS Governance, Stakeholder Engagement and Future Roadmap |
| GGAP-Sub-Schemes-CFM-LOG-CoC-PoC-Localgap | GLOBALG.A.P. Sub-Schemes: CFM, Logistics, CoC, PoC, localg.a.p. and Special Standards |
GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6: Add-Ons - GRASP, SPRING, Planet Pro, Forest Responsible and Retailer-Specific
| Code | Title |
|---|---|
| GGAP-AddOns-GRASP-SPRING-Planet-Forest | GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6 Add-Ons: GRASP, SPRING, Planet Pro, Forest Responsible and Retailer-Specific |
GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6: All Farm Base (AF) - Management, Workers, Environment, Traceability, Food Safety
| Code | Title |
|---|---|
| GGAP-IFA-AllFarmBase-Mgmt-Workers-Env-Trace | GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6 All Farm Base (AF): Management, Workers, Environment, Traceability and Food Safety |
GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6: Certification Bodies, Auditing, Compliance Categories (Major Must/Minor Must) and Lifecycle
| Code | Title |
|---|---|
| GGAP-Certification-CB-Auditing-MajorMinorMust | GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6 Certification Bodies, Audit Lifecycle and Compliance Categories |
| GGAP-Implementation-Roadmap-CIPRO-IT-Smart | GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6 Implementation Roadmap, CIPRO IT-System, Producer Roles |
GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6: Crops Base (CB) - Propagation, Soil, Water, IPM, PPP, Fertilizer
| Code | Title |
|---|---|
| GGAP-IFA-CropsBase-Production-PPP-IPM | GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6 Crops Base (CB): Propagation, Soil, Water, IPM, PPP, Fertilizer and Harvest |
GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6: Livestock Base (LB), Aquaculture Base (AB) and Product-Specific Standards
| Code | Title |
|---|---|
| GGAP-IFA-LivestockBase-Aquaculture-ProductSpecific | GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6 Livestock Base (LB), Aquaculture Base (AB) and Product-Specific Standards |
GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6: Scheme Structure, GFSI Recognition and Versions (v5.x to v6/v6.1/Smart)
| Code | Title |
|---|---|
| GGAP-IFA-v6-Scheme-GFSI-Versions | GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6 Scheme Structure, GFSI Recognition and Version Lineage |
Your Compliance Coverage
If you comply with GLOBALG.A.P. Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) Standard v6, you already cover:
SWIFT CSCF
17%
2 controls mapped
Compare →ICH E6(R3) - Good Clinical Practice
17%
2 controls mapped
Compare →FDA Quality Management System Regulation (QMSR)
17%
2 controls mapped
Compare →+ 72 more: NIST SP 800-171A Rev 3 - Assessing CUI Security Requirements (17%), BRCGS Global Standard for Food Safety Issue 9 (17%)
See all 75 mapped frameworks ↓Maps to 75 other frameworks
Frequently Asked Questions
What is GLOBALG.A.P. Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) Standard v6?
GLOBALG.A.P. Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) Standard v6 is a compliance framework from International (GLOBALG.A.P.) with 7 domains and 12 controls. GLOBALG.A.P. INTEGRATED FARM ASSURANCE (IFA) STANDARD v6 is the world's leading private-sector pre-farm-gate food safety + agricultural quality + sustainability + social-practice assurance scheme published by FoodPLUS GmbH (Cologne, Germany) - a wholly-owned subsidiary of GLOBALG.A.P. ASSOCIATION. KEY VERSIONS: (a) v5.2 + v5.3 (2017-2022 transition); (b) IFA v6 launched September 2022 + transition period completed 2024; (c) v6.1 amended December 2024 with technical updates + clarifications + remediation handling; (d) IFA v6 SMART launched 2024 as modular sub-scheme allowing risk-based + audit-frequency-flexible certification for established producers. SCOPE: covers PRE-FARM-GATE production for (a) CROPS - fruits + vegetables + nuts + flowers + ornamentals + combinable crops + green coffee + plants + plant propagation material; (b) LIVESTOCK - cattle + sheep + dairy + pigs + poultry + turkey + ducks; (c) AQUACULTURE - fish + crustaceans + molluscs + multi-species farming. SCHEME STRUCTURE: modular hierarchy (i) ALL FARM BASE (AF) - cross-cutting requirements for all subscopes (Management + Workers + Environment + Traceability + Food Safety + GFSI hooks); (ii) BASE STANDARD per subscope (CROPS BASE CB + LIVESTOCK BASE LB + AQUACULTURE BASE AB); (iii) PRODUCT-SPECIFIC STANDARDS (Fruit + Vegetables FV + Combinable Crops + Tea + Coffee + Aquaculture species + etc.) layering on top. Producer certifies one or more product-specific scopes + automatically commits to AF + relevant Base. CONTROL POINTS + COMPLIANCE CRITERIA (CPCCs): each control point has (a) Major Must - 100 percent compliance required + no exception; (b) Minor Must - 95 percent compliance threshold; (c) Recommendation - non-binding; remediation period for Minor Must non-compliance + revocation for repeated Major Must. SUB-PROGRAMS + ADD-ONS: GRASP (GLOBALG.A.P. Risk Assessment on Social Practice) - voluntary social-practice add-on; SPRING (Sustainable Program for Irrigation and Groundwater Use) - water sustainability; PLANET PRO PROGRAM - environmental excellence; FOREST RESPONSIBLE PROGRAM; ALBERT HEIJN PROTOCOL + retailer-specific add-ons. GFSI RECOGNITION: IFA v6 is RECOGNIZED under the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) Benchmarking Requirements + recognized internationally by major food retailers + brands (Tesco + Walmart + Carrefour + Lidl + Aldi + Ahold Delhaize + Sainsbury + Costco + Coles + Woolworths + Whole Foods + many more). CERTIFICATION: by accredited Certification Bodies (~140 CBs globally) operating under ISO/IEC 17065 + GLOBALG.A.P. accreditation criteria; certification valid 1 year + annual surveillance audit + unannounced audits; certificates published in IT system. CIPRO + 2024-2025 PIPELINE: digital transformation + IT-system updates + AI risk-based audit selection + remote audits + sustainability indicators expansion + carbon + biodiversity + water-stewardship integration + alignment with EU Green Deal + Farm-to-Fork Strategy + CSRD ESRS sustainability reporting. PUBLICATION + LICENSE: IFA v6 standard document is COPYRIGHTED by FoodPLUS GmbH + freely available via globalgap.org for producers + certification bodies (with attribution); structure publicly known via globalgap.org publications + GFSI Benchmarking Requirements + industry publications. COORDINATION: GLOBALG.A.P. coordinates with GFSI + FSSC 22000 (verified separately) + BRCGS + IFS + SQF + Codex Alimentarius + ISO 22000 + ISO 9001 + Rainforest Alliance + Fair Trade + UTZ (merged into Rainforest Alliance) + Sustainable Agriculture Initiative (SAI) + Fairtrade. It is used by organisations to establish and maintain compliance with industry standards and regulatory requirements.
How many controls does GLOBALG.A.P. Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) Standard v6 have?
GLOBALG.A.P. Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) Standard v6 has 12 controls organised across 7 domains. The largest domains are GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6: 2024-2025 Pipeline, EU Green Deal, CSRD Coordination and Sectoral Standards (5 controls), GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6: Certification Bodies, Auditing, Compliance Categories (Major Must/Minor Must) and Lifecycle (2 controls), GLOBALG.A.P. IFA v6: Add-Ons - GRASP, SPRING, Planet Pro, Forest Responsible and Retailer-Specific (1 controls). Each control defines specific requirements that organisations must implement to achieve compliance.
What frameworks does GLOBALG.A.P. Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) Standard v6 map to?
GLOBALG.A.P. Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) Standard v6 maps to 75 other compliance frameworks. The top mapping partners are SWIFT CSCF (17% coverage), ICH E6(R3) - Good Clinical Practice (17% coverage), FDA Quality Management System Regulation (QMSR) (17% coverage). Use our comparison tool to explore control-level mappings between frameworks.
How do I get started with GLOBALG.A.P. Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) Standard v6 compliance?
Start your GLOBALG.A.P. Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) Standard v6 compliance journey by running a self-assessment on our platform to identify your current compliance posture. Our AI advisory can answer specific questions about GLOBALG.A.P. Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) Standard v6 requirements, and cross-framework mapping helps you leverage existing controls from other frameworks you may already comply with. Create a free account to access all 12 controls and track your progress.
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