The Fair Farms Standard

The Fair Farms Standard

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Fair Farms Training and Certification Program: Promoting Ethical Employment Practices in Australian Horticulture
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Promoting ethical employment practices in Australian horticulture.

The Fair Farms Standard is an industry-owned standard describing fair and responsible employment practices that, if implemented by a participant, provide assurance (through a third-party audit) that the participant employs and treats workers in a fair and responsible manner. This assurance includes that:

  • (a) the participant engages and remunerates their staff in accordance with all applicable state and federal laws, rules and Awards relating to fair work and immigration laws;
  • (b) the participant understands and appropriately discharges their responsibilities towards workers engaged through third-parties (labour hire providers);
  • (c) the participant ensures a safe work environment and, where applicable, legally compliant and reasonable standards of on-farm accommodation for workers; and
  • (d) the participant follows an approach of zero-tolerance towards any form of forced labour, bonded labour or any form of modern slavery.

 

The Fair Farms Standard has been developed by Growcom in consultation with growers and other members of the fresh produce supply chain, industry representative bodies, technical experts, trade unions, representatives of the major Australian retailers (supermarket chains) and the Fair Work Ombudsman. The Fair Farms Standard is founded on the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) Base Code and upon the conventions of the International Labour Organization (ILO). The Standard will be continuously reviewed and updated in accordance with the consultation process set out below.

Fair Farms Training and Certification Program

The objective of the Fair Farms Training and Certification Program is fostering fair and responsible employment practices across the Australian horticulture industry. The program aims at establishing a culture of compliance which will lead to better employment practices, fairer treatment of workers and reduced risk of exploitation.

 

The Fair Farms Training and Certification Program has been developed by Growcom (scheme owner) with reference to the Credibility Principles established by the ISEAL Alliance (https://www.isealalliance.org/credible-sustainability-standards/iseal-credibility-principles), a global initiative to strengthen sustainability standards systems. Growcom is committed to continuously review and improve the Fair Farms Training and Certification Program, always aspiring to operate a credible and effective system that achieves its purpose.

 

The Fair Farms Training and Certification Program is open to all businesses operating within the Australian horticulture supply chain that:

▪ Grow produce for retail sale, and/or

▪ Pack produce for retail sale, and/or

▪ Operate as an aggregator, distributor, broker or agent supplying produce for retail sale.

 

For detail on the operational workings of the program, its underlying principles and rules refer to the information and resources available on the Fair Farms website: www.fairfarms.com.au

What’s it in Fair Farms for the Grower and Supplier?

Your business will benefit from being Fair Farms certified in several ways:

  • You will set yourself apart as an ethical employer. This will improve your standing with workers, making labour more accessible. Labour hire firms are also more likely to send workers your way. Overall, Fair Farms certification will help you to improve your supply of consistent labour.
  • Fair Farms certification has been accepted by major retailers Woolworths, Aldi, Coles and Metcash (IGA). This means that Australian growers can now opt for the one program and adopt the one Standard that meets the ethical sourcing requirements of these retailers. This will make compliance easier, more affordable, and more effective.
  • You will demonstrate to regulatory bodies such as the Fair Work Ombudsman and the wider public that you are committed to complying with Australian employment laws and ethical standards.

Why BSI?

BSI believes the world should be supplied with food that has been produced to an industry recognized food safety standard. We offer a broad range of food safety certification and risk management services to help all organizations in the food supply chain achieve compliance and industry best practice to grow their business.

We’re a leading food safety and certification provider with extensive auditing capacity and the capability to conduct integrated audits for a wide range of food safety standards across the entire food and beverage supply chain – including GFSI-recognized standards.

Our service solution for food safety includes certification, training, assessment, and supply chain software, providing you and your customer’s assurance and enabling you to manage risk more effectively.