GLOBALG.A.P. North America announces that North American retailers seeking packhouse-level food safety certification for suppliers in Latin America now have the option of GLOBALG.A.P.’s Produce Handling Assurance (PHA) standard.  

Equifruit, North America's leading Fairtrade-certified banana importer sourcing from Ecuador, Peru, Colombia, Mexico, and Nicaragua recently worked with Ecuadorian banana grower, Asoguabo, to be the first operation outside of the U.S. with PHA certification.

PHA provides food safety and traceability certification of postharvest activities such as the cooling, packing, handling, and storage of crops for human consumption. 

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It is recognized by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) and supports compliance with the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). 

“The GLOBALG.A.P. PHA standard is specifically developed for operations doing packing, cooling and storage - whether on the farm or at an independent facility. We work closely with sector stakeholders to ensure we are setting robust, yet realistic and cost-efficient standards while still meeting the evolving needs of buyers,” says Roberta Anderson, president of GLOBALG.A.P. North America.