Abu Dhabi: Abu Dhabi has certified a total of 1,536 farms in the emirate for adopting high standards of food production, sustainability, and worker and animal welfare.
The Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority (Adafsa) said the farms has been recognised with the Abu Dhabi Good Agricultural Practices (ADG.A.P.) certification, a local series of standards based on the internationally designed Global Good Agricultural Practices programme (GLOBALG.A.P.).
Among the facilities certified by the end of 2022, 751 farms are located in Abu Dhabi, 521 are in Al Ain, and 264 are based in Al Dhafra region.
Added value, safety
The internationally accredited certificate will now help add value to about 44 certified products from these farms.
All ADG.A.P. certified farms will also receive advice and guidance from Adafsa agriculture extension team, which will, in turn, result in improved farm infrastructure, including fruit and vegetable handling areas, water reservoirs, plant protection products, and chemical storage facilities. The certification further ensures that farm workers will receive training in all technical aspects of crop production, including food and environmental safety, biosecurity, produce traceability, and farm worker health and welfare.
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Internationally recognised
Adafsa was granted the rights to issue ADG.A.P. certification for adherence to the standards of the Germany-developed GLOBALG.A.P. ADG.A.P. certified producers, farm details, and certification status are now also available on the GLOBALG.A.P. database.
Adafsa prioritises food safety and security, workers and animal welfare, and the sustainability, and has therefore signed an agreement with the GLOBALG.A.P. to issued the ADG.A.P. certificate. This certificate follows a national model to allow farmers to apply international standards cost-effectively, and in a manner that suits farming conditions and agricultural sustainability requirements in the Abu Dhabi emirate. The accreditation body audits, inspects and conducts evaluations on production processes, and follows up on the practices applied in the farms, in order to verify compliance.
