Management of Internal Control Systems (ICS) using Ecert Grower Group Certification Frank Gerriets, Director Organic Services GmbH f.gerriets@organic-services.com Mareike Brandt, Project assistant Organic Services GmbH m.brandt@organic-services.com 1
Starting point: solving the main challenges of ICS systems The systematic application and documentation of internal control and certification procedures is complex: number of members tracking of crops and volumes tracking of internal inspections tracking of non-conformities tracking of conflicts of interest documentation of trainings managing multiple standards preparation for external inspection and many more 2
Ecert Grower Group Certification background information developed from 2009-2012 with support of the German Development Bank (DEG) implemented by CERES, Organic Services and Intact with expertise of IMO, IBD, Ecocert, Naturland and others pilot tests in Latin America global launch at BioFach 2013 commercial use started with Naturland, IBD, IMO and groups in Latin America, East Africa, India and South-East Asia 3
Ecert -> Ecert Grower Group Certification Ecert has already been operational for years and is a reliable, professional IT system for audit management adaptation to ICS requirements downsizing change of wording e.g. external to internal audits presetting of standards private and public regulations (organic, fair trade, sustainable) development of a combined checklist management tool which generates checklists dynamically per operator depending on standard and production presetting of pdf reports and data exports for external certification audit central updates in case of future changes in standards 4
www.youtube.com: searching for Ecert grower group certification 5
IT infrastructure, security and support 6
Distribution and operating system Organic Services Implementation partner Consultancy Third-party certification body Nongovernmental organisation Processing or trading company Grower Group organisation* Grower group organisation * Under certain circumstances, small farmer groups themselves can be the implementation partner. 7
Requirements for grower groups to use the system Local implementation partner initial training for the grower group ongoing support Reliable IT equipment in the office power, internet, printer etc. Internal inspectors will continue to work paper based or using mobile devices (notebook, tablet) 8
Reports and exports Reports in English, Spanish and other languages farmer lists per standard, crops, last inspection, inspector etc. farmer membership card (ID-card) inspectors list Excel data: non-conformities and corrective actions 9
Two parts are included Farm inspections ICS management 10
Login via internet no hardware maintenance on your side no installation daily backup and on-going maintenance updates in case of changing of standards full support 11
Documentation of farm production and internal inspections All contacts in the system farmer inspector ICS manager others 12
Documentation of farm production and internal inspections Farm data contact data crops and yields livestock (if applicable) standards applied inspections conducted file upload (maps, documents etc.) results certification status per standard and crop non-conformities and due dates 13
Most important information available at main page of a contact 3 4 1 2 5 1. Sidebar with functions and characteristics 2. Contact data, including GPS data and GEO codes 3. Functions and characteristics Impact on what data are available Easy to find contacts with same functions 4. Additional functions and characteristics 5. Standards 14
Tabs available for farmers: Numbers Numbers: relevant for internal administration (membership number, local ID number etc.) and for data exchange with third party systems 15
Tabs available for farmers: Functions/characteristics Functions/characteristics type of contact such as farmer, inspector etc. entries have an impact on the tabs shown at the toolbar. Each contact can have several functions/characteristics 16
Tabs available for farmers: Crops Crops: list of all fields crops and yields last application GPS Data start of organic production 17
Tabs available for farmers: Standards Standards: fair, organic, GLOBALG.A.P. etc. starting date, end date inspection body (the group or sub-divisions) 18
Tabs available for farmers: Inspection Inspection: all inspections are listed inspection date inspector open inspection workflow and data with double click 19
Tabs available for farmers: Certification Certification: all certification results are listed incl. inspector s results per standard historical data 20
Tabs available for farmers: Corrective actions Lists of: non-conformities corrective actions due dates assigned inspector Export to Excel possible 21
Reports for printing or mailing Reports on mouse click farmer list per year per standard all standards crop list per year contact list ID card with certification status 22
Reports for printing or mailing Reports can be printed or saved as pdf Available in multiple languages 23
Reports for printing or mailing: farmer list, all standards List displaying farmers and key data including to which standard the farmer is in compliance with, contact data, total ha, commercial use, last inspector and date of last inspection 24
Reports for printing or mailing: farmer list EU organic List displaying farmers who are producing in compliance with EU organic standard; per year, with surface commercial use/subsistence; list per standard available 25
Reports for printing or mailing: crop list last 3 years List of fields/plots/paddocks with surface crop certification status per standard estimated yield of current crop date of last chemical input 26
Reports for printing or mailing: Identity card ID card displaying contact data farm code standards valid until photo of farmer date of birth of farmer ID card can be used as supply record by having it available at the warehouse. Every supply is noted and therefore traceable ID card facilitates supply and storage according to standards 27
Documentation of farm production and internal inspections Inspector s data contact data trainings and accreditations conflicts of interest regional scope languages 28
Tabs available for inspectors Inspector s data inspection body trainings conflicts of interest 29
Documentation of farm production and internal inspections Inspection checklists available per farmer with data from last inspection non-conformities dynamic generation of questions according to production Inspection results documented on paper (and are entered by administration staff after inspection) or on mobile devices Approval by ICS manager 30
Inspection checklist documents findings and allows follow up 31
Non-conformities and corrective actions per farmer Each non-conformity is saved and easily traced 32
Non-conformities and corrective actions for all farmers Exportable to Excel Enables follow up 33
Documentation of farm production and internal inspections ICS manager crosschecking of findings from internal inspection final approval follow-up of non-conformities conflicts of interest preparation for external certification visit 34
Documentation of farm production and internal inspections Others Administration member lists buyers and other relevant contact data Documentation and planning volumes per standard 35
Two parts are included Farm inspections ICS management 36
ICS management ICS management checklist assures completeness and availability of required documentation for external certification visit list of inspectors training and accreditation of inspectors and staff, conflicts of interest certification status, non-conformities and corrective actions of farmers impact on marketing 37
Checklist for internal requirements of the ICS 38
Checklist for internal requirements of the ICS 39
Control points of the checklists with additional notes per CP 40
To be added in future ERP system for tracking volumes traceability features internet browser technology local installation with update service 41
Contact the integrity and certification experts: Frank Gerriets f.gerriets@organic-services.com, cell +49 163 869 1843 Mareike Brandt m.brandt@organic-services.com, phone +49 89 820 759-03 Organic Services is the Global Sales Partner of Intact Consult www.intact.at 42
Organic Services Organic Services offers: Strategies, policies and business development; Project development and management includes application and reporting; Market studies address specific interests and realistic analyses; Support to companies in global sourcing; Consultancy in sustainability, CSR, Fair Trade and long-term value chain commitments; Intact Consult GmbH software based management solutions along the supply chain; Ecert cloud services; implementation, consulting, training; Support and establishment of quality management systems, standard setting, certification and accreditation systems; Event organization (e.g. BioFach Congress), own conferences, study tours, and consults fairs; Communication management for efficient internal and external positioning; Support for Natural and Organic Cosmetics companies in sourcing and market access; Consultancy in Organic Aquaculture and Sustainable Seafood throughout the supply chain; Snow Leopard Projects GmbH biogas plants for fiber rich biomass; and other services on request. 43