Good Agricultural Practices

Please check the events calender for training times and registration information.

National Good Agriculture Practices Program

The National GAPs Program was established in 1999 and based at Cornell University (www.gaps.cornell.edu).  The GAPs Program has collaborators in 34 states throughout the nation and has created many educational materials to help implement good agricultural practices on the farm.  Implementation of on-farm GAPs is voluntary with no federal governance. GAP adoption and certification offers two primary benefits:

1) Reduce the risk that a foodborne disease outbreak will originate on the farm and
2) Improved market access opportunities.

Good Agriculture Practices (GAPs) Program at Ohio State University

GAPS are a series of voluntary management guidelines that can help to reduce the risks of microbial contamination of fruits and vegetables. GAPs can be incorporated into any production system and targets pre-harvest and post-harvest practices.

GAPs address four major routes of foodborne pathogen contamination of fresh produce: water, waste, wildlife and workers.  For more information on GAPs programs at OSU contact Dr. Sanja Ilic or Dr. Melanie L. Ivey (Team Leaders).

GAPs Training Programs at Ohio State University