What is the farm’s path to international certification and what does it grant?

Although the first harvest this year is almost three months away, and the land has just finished melting the frosts, there has been no shortage of work on the farm since December. According to V. Nagreckis, although growing lettuce is a complex process, the GlobalG.AP (Good Agricultural Practice) standard of good agricultural practice helps to cope with the burden on the shoulders throughout the year and to adhere to the principles responsible agriculture, according to the report.

The farmer says that his farm currently has 400 hectares, of which lettuce is grown on about 50 hectares: “Lettuce is a very worrying crop, so to maintain the quality and freshness of the 10 types of lettuce that are grown on the farm, we must invest in new technologies. For example, we pay a lot of attention to watering vegetables, because to protect future heat production, we must ensure the necessary amount of water. In addition, our vacuum refrigerator allows salads to cool extremely quickly and safely, so they stay fresh longer. “

According to the farmer, preparations for the new salad harvest will begin in December, planning the number of seedlings and new plant species. According to him, workforce planning and technical preparations are already underway, and field preparation work will begin in early March, when the snow melts.

“As we are seasonal producers, the lettuce planting begins around March 20 and we finish this process in mid-September. We write the first “fruits” of the production in mid-May, and depending on the type of salad and the weather conditions, we can enjoy the harvest until December. If the year is good, we harvest about 3 on average, ”says V. Nagreckis.

International certificates

The interviewee highlights that this farm is certified according to the international standard GLOBALG.AP (Good Agricultural Practices), which helps to grow vegetables in a sustainable and safe way. He goes on to say that this not only opens wider waters for the export of goods, but also ensures better quality products.

“For example, we must ensure a perfect salad supply chain. This means that if a buyer buys a package of salad and expresses dissatisfaction, we could track where it grew and what fertilizers were used to grow it, when and what team cut and even packaged it. In this way we show that we are responsible for each of our salads and we can identify the smallest stage of the process in which mistakes have been made and will not be repeated in the future ”, says V. Nagreckis.

The farmer goes on to say that the standard is also committed to continuous improvement of working conditions. Every year the farm undergoes an international audit, on the basis of which it is decided whether to renew the certificate and recommendations are made on how to improve both the staff working environment and growing conditions. It is also necessary to carefully record all information related to agriculture and even describe the principles of waste management or sustainable and environmentally friendly agriculture.

Look for change

According to Rasa Didjurgytė, Head of Social Responsibility in the Purchasing Department of Lidl Lietuva, GLOBALG.AP good agricultural practices help to ensure the quality of the fruits and vegetables that appear on the stands of the retail stores. The requirements apply to all Lidl fresh fruit and vegetable suppliers, including Vaidas Salad Farm and Irma Nagreckis.

He goes on to say that more recently, the retail chain, together with GLOBALG.AP and other partners, has started developing the first standard for biodiversity-friendly agriculture. This standard is expected to be available to all European fruit and vegetable producers as an add-on module to GLOBALG.AP later this year.

“Biodiversity and healthy and protected ecosystems are at the center of our sustainability strategy, as damaging biodiversity represents a threat both to the environment and to the future of all of us. We understand our responsibility as a distribution network for the impact in nature throughout the supply chain, therefore we constantly review our strategy and try to take additional actions, ”says R. Didjurgytė.

Fill the certification gap in Europe

That is why the retail chain has decided to work with internationally recognized experts in sustainable agricultural and food systems to develop a new standard for traditional European agriculture. In this way, the aim will be to make biodiversity on fruit and vegetable farms even more sustainable and fill the certification gap that has existed so far in Europe.

“The basic GLOBALG.AP certificate can be complemented by various modules designed to guarantee, for example, social standards or a sustainable use of water. The module we are developing will be the first in Europe to focus on biodiversity, not only on farms, but also in other parts of the food industry chain, from producers to processors and distributors ”, says the Head of Responsibility Social of the Purchasing Department. .