Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) Quiz

Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs)

Overview Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) are a set of guidelines and principles aimed at ensuring the production of safe and healthy food. GAPs focus on the entire food production process, from farm to table.

Key Principles

• Soil and Water Management: Proper management of soil and water resources to prevent contamination.
• Crop Management: Implementation of practices to prevent pest and disease infestations, and minimize the use of chemical inputs.
• Pest Management: Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategies to minimize the use of chemical pesticides.
• Harvesting and Handling: Proper handling and storage of produce to prevent contamination and damage.
• Hygiene and Sanitation: Maintenance of cleanliness and sanitation practices throughout the farm.
• Record Keeping: Accurate and detailed record keeping to track farm activities, inputs, and produce movement.

GAPs Benefits

• Improved Food Safety: Reduced risk of contamination and foodborne illnesses.
• Increased Efficiency: Optimized use of resources, reduced waste, and improved crop yields.
• Market Access: Compliance with GAPs can increase market access and competitiveness.
• Environmental Sustainability: Implementation of environmentally friendly practices, reducing the farm's environmental footprint.

GAPs Implementation

• Farm Assessment: Conduct regular assessments to identify areas for improvement.
• Training and Education: Provide training and education to farm workers on GAPs principles and practices.
• Implementation and Monitoring: Implement GAPs principles and regularly monitor and evaluate their effectiveness.
• Continuous Improvement: Continuously review and improve GAPs implementation to ensure ongoing compliance and effectiveness.

Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs)

Overview

• GAPs are guidelines and principles aimed at ensuring the production of safe and healthy food.
• GAPs focus on the entire food production process, from farm to table.

Key Principles

• Soil and water management involves proper management of soil and water resources to prevent contamination.
• Crop management involves implementing practices to prevent pest and disease infestations, and minimizing the use of chemical inputs.
• Pest management involves using Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategies to minimize the use of chemical pesticides.
• Harvesting and handling involves proper handling and storage of produce to prevent contamination and damage.
• Hygiene and sanitation involves maintaining cleanliness and sanitation practices throughout the farm.
• Record keeping involves accurate and detailed tracking of farm activities, inputs, and produce movement.

GAPs Benefits

• Improved food safety reduces the risk of contamination and foodborne illnesses.
• Increased efficiency is achieved through optimized use of resources, reduced waste, and improved crop yields.
• Market access is increased through compliance with GAPs, making farms more competitive.
• Environmental sustainability is achieved through the implementation of environmentally friendly practices, reducing the farm's environmental footprint.

GAPs Implementation

• Farm assessments involve conducting regular assessments to identify areas for improvement.
• Training and education involves providing training and education to farm workers on GAPs principles and practices.
• Implementation and monitoring involves implementing GAPs principles and regularly monitoring and evaluating their effectiveness.
• Continuous improvement involves continuously reviewing and improving GAPs implementation to ensure ongoing compliance and effectiveness.

Kuilima Farm Overview

• Kuilima Farm is owned by Turtle Bay Resort and operated by Pono Pacific Land Management.
• The farm is 468 acres in total, with only 25 acres currently following the HGAP standards and farm plan.
• The farm is located in North Shore, Oahu, with a physical address of 57-146 Kamehameha Highway, Kahuku, HI 96713.

Food Safety Policy

• Kuilima Farm's food safety policy is to practice food safety in operations by following USDA Harmonized GAP standards.
• Compliance is ensured through regular employee training, monitoring by designated Food Safety Leads, and reviewing the farm food safety plan.
• Lei Hanawahine is the operations Food Safety and Fulfillment Lead, responsible for ensuring all employees understand the policy and comply with the conditions of the farm food safety plan.
• Violations of food safety policies are taken seriously, and incidents shall be reported, recorded, and may result in disciplinary action.

Employee Training

• Personnel are trained in food safety policies through in-person training, review of written policies, and self-audit practices.
• New hires must review the farm food safety plan, complete hand washing training, and watch employee training videos within one month of their start date.
• Quarterly review of key SOPs and handwashing denomination refresher training are completed by all farm crew.

Water Quality

• Kuilima farm uses water from a fully enclosed agricultural well and the public municipal water system.
• Well water is used for irrigation only, while municipal water is used for handwashing, chemical applications, cleaning, and sanitization.
• The most recent water quality report for municipal water is stored on HeavyConnect, and agricultural well water is tested annually by FQ Labs, a GLP accredited laboratory.
• Water samples are collected according to FQ Labs Water Sampling Instructions, and test methodology used is SM9223B Colilert P/A.