EFI Taps ELEVATE and NSF International to Help with New Processes
WASHINGTON, DC - The global pandemic continues to bring new challenges and demands to the face of the produce industry. While the safety and labor practices of growers and retailers have always been of the utmost importance, now is a time where it has become a primary focus. This is why the Equitable Food Initiative (EFI) has partnered with ELEVATE and NSF International to support its auditing process. Together, the three have combined expertise to streamline grower certification into one auditing process.
“ELEVATE and NSF International’s wide-ranging experience underscores the benefits of EFI’s one-stop shop audit which covers three issue areas under a single certification,” said Kenton Harmer, Managing Director for EFI. “NSF International brings a wide breadth of experience with GFSI standards, and ELEVATE offers its knowledge validating social responsibility programs and working closely with buyers, compliance teams, management, and workers to meet strict corporate social responsibility expectations. These areas of expertise complement our multi-stakeholder certification program and support our efforts to combat audit fatigue.”
The three processes of labor practices, food safety, and pest management, have been tailored into one single audit, according to a press release.
By bringing together the services of ELEVATE and NSF, EFI has been able to eliminate audit fatigue while giving growers, retailers, and consumers the reassurance that they need during these uncertain times.
“Our expertise in understanding and assessing labor risk and driving measurable improvements for clients coupled with NSF International’s expert advice in food safety and pest management makes us a valuable resource for offering a consistent, thorough, and actionable auditing solution for any grower,” commented Meghan Quinlan, Vice President of Food and Agriculture for ELEVATE.
With the combined experience and expertise of each company, it is certain that no stone will go unturned as they investigate and certify growers across the industry. ELEVATE is known for its business risk and sustainability solutions and serves the world’s top food retailers with assessment, consulting, program management, and analytic services. While NSF is the leading certifier for international, national, and retailer standards such as the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) benchmarked standards, PrimusGFS, GLOBALG.A.P., CanadaGAP, SQF, and BRCGS.
“We are excited to collaborate with ELEVATE and provide food safety and pest management auditing for the EFI certification, as well as support EFI’s efforts and visions to GFSI recognition,” explained Sarah Krol, Senior Managing Director of Global Supply Chain Food Safety for NSF International. “The EFI audit is a unique application of food safety standards by including extensive worker interviews and the socially responsible aspects of food safety not found in other audits.”
While safety continues to take the forefront of everyone’s thoughts, rest assured these experts are working to ensure it is easier than ever not to let anything slip through the cracks. With EFI, ELEVATE, and NSF on the job, produce growers and consumers alike can see premium results.
For the latest updates on how the produce industry is innovating its safety processes, keep up-to-date with AndNowUKnow.
