Are you a Fonterra supplier? If so, then you’ll be aware of The Co-operative Difference. In this blog, we talk about Industry Assurance Programmes (IAPs) and focus on Fonterra's The Co-operative Difference and how FarmIQ helps you to provide the evidence to meet their requirements.
We farm in an age where transparency and traceability are first and foremost in the minds of our consumers. Never has data and information about how, where, when and what we do on-farm been so valuable – from inside the farm gate, right through to our consumer’s plate.
Meat, milk and fibre processors - the middle links of this supply chain - have had to respond to our needs at one end and consumers at the other; which is not an easy task. Organising existing data and discovering what’s missing but essential to meet market and legislative requirements, at the same time as modernising strategies and being cost-effective is an uphill struggle.
Enter the IAP, or Industry Assurance Programme - a processor’s solution to gathering required farm data and information in an orderly manner. I know you’re thinking “farming as an industry is awash with plans and programmes!” but hear me out. Whether you’ve done your farm environment plan (FEP) or invested hours preparing for an audit; you’ll have the first-hand experience of the benefits they provide and here’s a few of the most obvious:
Most importantly, central government have recognised the value that IAP’s contribute to policy development, market access and NZ Inc., and are likely to include them in their Integrated Farm Planning (IFP) framework as compliance pathways, making the whole process more streamlined and less costly for all involved.
FarmIQ lives and breathes every angle of assurance programmes as they underpin our ‘why’. The most recent IAP we’ve engaged with is Fonterra’s The Cooperative Difference. Like all others, it’s categorised into the standard sections – People & Community, Animals, Environment and Prosperity. All Fonterra suppliers need to meet the requirements within to achieve the incentive and they’re fully supported with some great resources, such as Tiaki.
We do not believe any IAP requirements are onerous or difficult to achieve but there may be potential for some bottlenecks and under-equipped farmers to fall short.
To that end, how can we make IAP’s work in a way that supports everyday on-farm actions and activate the many cross-benefits? Here’s my top tips:
Make a start at your end of the supply chain now. We’ve put together a handy guide showing you how you can manage many of The Co-operative Difference requirements using FarmIQ.
By Alison Worth - Subject Matter Expert: Environment & Compliance.