Agrios / auditing - the orchard register

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The orchard register

Orchardists who want to comply with the requirements of integrated production must record all cultivation measures in an orchard register in order to establish proof of an environmentally friendly method of production. The orchard register is therefore an important document and must be kept at least 5 years after its auditing.

In the orchard register, the orchardist keeps a continuous record of the various cultivation methods in his orchard.
The following measures must be recorded in the orchard register:

Identification of the orchard
Spray applications: date, product, amount, reason (i.e. pests, diseases, thinning, etc.)
Amounts of fertilizer
Herbicides: date, product, amount
Count of primary scab infection (in 100 shoots/orchard)
Count of beneficial and harmful insects, in the case of a necessary chemical treatment (see point 13d)
Soil analysis at the planting of a new orchard (include copy of document)
Sprayer test (include copy of document)
Ecological measures effected.

Further, the following points can be recorded:

Irrigation
Physiological condition of the orchard (growth, crop, quality)
Harvest dates
Type of sprayer and spray concentration

At the time of auditing, the results of at least one soil analysis per orchard should be included. On pages 3 and 4, the count of beneficial and harmful insects must be recorded. In the orchard register, the most important observation dates are emphasized graphically. In particular, spraying against spider mites is justified only by a relatively small number of predatory mites.
Every spray application should be substantiated by a count of the pests and their natural enemies in the orchard (threshold of tolerance).

The orchard register must be kept up to date, ready at all times for auditing, and eventually be signed by the orchardist.

The spray applications effected after auditing and the harvest dates are to be recorded in the supplementary forms at the end of the orchard register and submitted to the marketing organization at the delivery of the fruit harvested.

The declaration of participation in the AGRIOS program also includes the period of time after harvest. Consequently, those measures effected in that period of time, for example fall fertilization or use of herbicide, must be properly recorded in the orchard register. As these treatments are not usually recorded by the time of auditing, they need to be added to the orchard register of the past season and recorded on the corresponding pages of the orchard register for the new season.

6. Auditing and analyses

a) Field checks

The AGRIOS auditors carry out auditing in the orchards. In the growth period, the supervisory authorities spot check the orchard registers and one or more orchard sectors per orchardist.
On the basis of a checklist they have a close look at the condition of the orchard, check the individual cultivation measures used and take soil, leaf, or fruit samples to have them analyzed.

In the case of clear violations of the guidelines, the orchard sector involved or the entire orchard is excluded from the AGRIOS program for the current year. The provincial laws about integrated cultivation allow for additional sanctions.

b) Auditing of the orchard register

A complete audit of the orchard registers is effected:
a) before harvest of early varieties and
b) before harvest of all other varieties.

At this time, it is determined if the cultivation measures effected since fall of the preceding year comply with the guidelines. If unauthorized measures are found at the time of auditing, the orchard sector involved or the entire orchard is excluded from the program.

c) Storage checks

During the delivery and storage of fruit from integrated production, the auditors check that the marketing organization clearly labels the fruit delivered as "integrated" or "not integrated" and store it using an appropriate system.
AGRIOS works together with the marketing organizations to develop specific labels for separate labeling of the various production methods.
During the storage period and the marketing of the fruit, further checks are effected.

d) Residue analysis

An important goal of integrated production is to offer the consumer fruit which is as free from residues as possible. Therefore, the supervisory authorities take a predetermined number of fruit samples from the storage facilities and have them analyzed in the laboratory for the most important substances.

The legally allowed maximum limits of residues must not be exceeded even in conventional production. If integrated production aims to additionally guarantee the safety of the consumer, higher standards must be applied.
Therefore AGRIOS demands that eventual residues of plant protection products on fruit from integrated production do not exceed 50% of the maximum legal limits. Also, the samples must not contain substances which are not allowed in the program.

7. Sanctions

An orchard sector is excluded from the program when:

On the basis of the orchard register, use of a substance not allowed in the program is determined, or
The intervals and the restrictions applying to the allowed substances are not complied with.

An entire orchard is excluded from the program when:

the predetermined audits are not allowed to be effected,
a participant intentionally conceals the use of a measure contrary to the guidelines, does not record it in the orchard register, and its use is determined through field checks,
a participant is absent at the time of a field check without excuse,
no orchard register is submitted,
an improperly kept register is not completed in spite of warnings or the records are not conclusive,
the law protecting bees is violated,
residues of substances not allowed in the program are found.

Administrative fines are provided for in cases of culpable negligence or intentional omissions or falsifying of records and are anchored in provincial law.