A standardised food safety audit would be a great way to keep all supermarkets in check…well, this is now a reality! For almost one month, the Department of Agriculture of Australia announced that many major supermarkets will participate in this new food safety standard.
The major participants in this new food safety audit system include Aldi, Coles, Costco, Metcash (IGA) and Woolworths. The new system is called the Harmonised Australian Retailer Produce Scheme (HARPS) and will slowly roll out a trial version in the next few months. It is something that has not happened in the world so there will be a lot of tweaking involved until the final scheme is created by the end of the year.
This new scheme will not only help consumers stay food safe and get the best produce in their stores but also will help 14,000 growers across Australia who currently supply the nation’s leading fresh produce retailers. Why? Because it will lower the cost of doing business for the industry, which is estimated to save growers and producers around $40 million per year through more efficient auditing processes.
Are you excited about this prospect? Or are you a bit sceptical as to whether this will take flight? I guess only time can tell…
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