Japan Gap Foundation Withdraws from GFSI Recognition

Japan GAP Foundation has decided to discontinue the ASIAGAP Scheme and to withdraw from the GFSI recognition process.

Timeline

ASIAGAP’s recognition by GFSI will therefore cease as of 27 June 2025.

Impact on Currently Certified Sites:

Any site holding a certificate issued following an audit undertaken against the following standards recognised before the withdrawal on 27 June 2025 will continue to hold recognised certificates until their date of expiry.

Standards: ASIAGAP (Asia Good Agricultural Practice) /
• Control Points and Compliance Criteria for Fruits and Vegetables 2.3;
• Control Points and Compliance Criteria for Tea Ver.2.3

Scope: BI – Farming of Plants (other than grains and pulses)

Standards: ASIAGAP (Asia Good Agricultural Practice) /
• Control Points and Compliance Criteria for Grains Ver.2.3;

Scope: BII – Farming of Grains and Pulses

Standards: ASIAGAP (Asia Good Agricultural Practice)/
• Control Points and Compliance Criteria for Fruits and Vegetables 2.3;
• Control Points and Compliance Criteria for Grains Ver.2.3;
• Control Points and Compliance Criteria for Tea Ver.2.3

Scope: BIII – Pre-process handling of plant products

Impact on Sites Seeking Future Certification:

A full list of GFSI recognised programmes can be found here. 

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GFSI wishes to thank Japan GAP Foundation for the cooperation and engagement in the recognition process.  Further information is available below.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Japan GAP Foundation has decided to discontinue the ASIAGAP scheme and to withdraw from the GFSI recognition process. Find out what this may mean for you.

General Information

What is happening?
Japan GAP Foundation, a Certification Programme Owner, has decided to discontinue the ASIAGAP scheme and to withdraw from the GFSI Recognition process. 

When is the withdrawal effective?
Japan GAP’s formal withdrawal from GFSI Recognition and its contractual obligations is effective as of 27 June 2025.

Your Facility is Currently Certified by ASIAGAP

1 – I have an ASIAGAP certificate issued before JapanGap’s withdrawal (27 June 2025). Is it still GFSI-recognised?
Yes, sites certified against the ASIAGAP scheme recognised by GFSI before the withdrawal on 27 June 2025, will continue to hold recognised certificates until their date of expiry.

2 – What if I need new food safety certification or need to renew my current food safety certificate?
Sites seeking new GFSI-recognised food safety certification or recertification will need to obtain this through a different GFSI-recognised Certification Programme Owner. 

3 – I have an upcoming maintenance audit that will fall after the date the withdrawal becomes effective. Will my certificate remain valid after the maintenance audit?
If the maintenance audit does not involve the issuing of a new certificate, the recognition will remain until the expiry date of the existing certificate but only under the existing scopes / conditions. New products / members cannot be added to an existing certificate because they were not recognised or part of the scope at the time of the certificate being issued originally.
Any amends to a certificate will invalidate the GFSI recognition as it will happen after withdrawal from the GFSI recognition scheme.

Your Facility is Seeking New Technical Food Safety Certification under ASIAGAP’s Previous Scheme

I had planned to get certified under the ASIAGAP scheme and required GFSI recognition but had not yet started the process. What should I do?
You should seek certification from a different GFSI-recognised Certification Programme Owner whose programme covers the relevant scope(s) of recognition.

Your Company (e.g., Retail, Food Service, Manufacturer) Requires GFSI-Recognised Certificates from Suppliers

1 – I am a business sourcing or purchasing and I require GFSI-recognised certification programmes from my suppliers. What does this mean for me?
If your supplier’s ASIAGAP certificate was issued before JapanGap’s withdrawal (27 June 2025), their certificate remains GFSI-recognised until its date of expiry.
If your supplier’s ASIAGAP certificate was issued on or after JapanGap’s withdrawal (27 June 2025), it is not GFSI-recognised.
For continued reliance on GFSI-recognised certification, your supplier(s) will need to obtain certification from a different GFSI-recognised Certification Programme Owner.

2 – How can I verify if a certificate from a supplier’s facility is GFSI-recognised? If you want to check your supplier’s certificate, you can do so through the Certificate Programme Owner’s directory, if one exists, or request that the site provides the verification.

General GFSI Information

What is GFSI Recognition? GFSI Recognition is a process by which a food safety Certification Programme is compared to the GFSI Benchmarking Requirements to determine equivalence. GFSI’s objective is to improve food safety and business efficiency through benchmarking and harmonisation, fostering mutual acceptance of GFSI-recognised Certification Programmes across the industry, enabling a “once certified, recognised everywhere” approach.

What are the GFSI Scopes of Recognition? GFSI has defined various scopes of recognition related to products or services, listed in Table 1 of the Benchmarking Requirements. These include scopes for farming (AI, AII, BI, BII, BIII), processing (C0, CI, CII, CIII, CIV), feed production (D), catering (E), retail/wholesale (FI), food broker/agent (FII), storage and distribution (G), service provision (H), packaging production (I), pet food production (JI, JII), and production of chemicals/bio-cultures (K). EFI’s GFSI recognition was for scopes BI (Farming of Plants other than cereals and pulses) and BIII (Pre-process Handling of Plant Products).

Where can I find other GFSI-recognised Certification Programmes? A complete list of other GFSI-recognised Certification Programme Owners and the scopes for which they are recognised is available on the GFSI website.

Who can I ask for more information? For questions about GFSI recognition, the benchmarking process, or the implications of this withdrawal, you can contact the GFSI Benchmarking Team at [email protected].

For questions specific to ASIAGAP’s ongoing activities, please contact ASIAGAP directly.