This book features five peer-reviewed reviews on the development and deployment of good agricultural practices (GAPs) across the agricultural sector.
The first chapter describes GAPs, notions of good farming, how GAP standards have evolved in developed and developing economies, the opportunities to evolve these pre- and postharvest standards and their related principles and practices in the future.
The second chapter reviews the role of GAPs in preventing microbial contamination of fresh produce. The chapter also summarises how GAPs have evolved, the impact they have had on the produce industry, as well as current GAPs and how they are implemented.
The third chapter considers the debates about GAPs in the context of controlled environment agriculture (CEA) and how GAPs can be developed as part of an effective food safety control programme in CEA systems around the world.
The fourth chapter addresses how GAPs can be used to optimise sustainable crop production and refers to three contrasting maize cultivation systems in the USA, Ethiopia and Argentina to demonstrate this.
The final chapter provides an overview of the GAP-related certification schemes in global banana production and how they can be utilised to address the yield gap, improve synchronisation between ecological processes, production routines and cost efficiency.
- Highlights the importance of good agricultural practices (GAPs) in achieving a safe, sustainable and secure agri-food supply chain
- Considers the evolution of GAPs and their implementation within the fresh produce sector to improve food safety
- Includes case studies which demonstrate how GAPs have been utilised to improve crop production in three contrasting maize cultivation systems
This book provides a detailed overview of the development and deployment of good agricultural practices (GAPs) across the agricultural sector and their role in contributing to a sustainable, safe and secure agri-food supply chain.
Chapter 1 - Developing good agricultural practices across global
agri-food supply chains: Louise Manning, University of Lincoln, UK; and John
G. Keogh, McGill University, Canada;
1. Introduction
2. The evolution of GAP as a concept
3. The development of GAP standards
4. Challenges facing GAP standards and implementation
5. Ensuring the effectiveness and inclusivity of GAP: the case of VietGAP
6. Conclusion
7. Acknowledgements
8. References
Chapter taken from: Manning, L. (ed.), Improving standards and certification
in agri-food supply chains: Ensuring safety, sustainability and social
responsibility pp. 223-242, Burleigh Dodds Science Publishing, Cambridge, UK,
2024, (ISBN: 978 1 80146 451 2)
Chapter 2 - The role of Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) in preventing
pathogenic microbial contamination of fresh produce: Thomas P. Saunders and
Elizabeth A. Bihn, Produce Safety Alliance Cornell University, USA;
1 Introduction
2 Evolution of Good Agricultural Practices from voluntary to regulation
3 Reasons for adopting Good Agricultural Practices
4 Why Good Agricultural Practices remain the foundation for fresh produce
safety
5 Commitment and training
6 Scalability of Good Agricultural Practices
7 Feasibility of implementing Good Agricultural Practices
8 Assessing risks
9 Good Agricultural Practices: always room for improvement
10 Produce safety adds to farming stress
11 Good Agricultural Practices relevance for the future
12 Conclusion
13 Where to look for further information
14 Acknowledgement
15 References
Chapter taken from: Matthews, K. R. (ed.), Advances in ensuring the
microbiological safety of fresh produce, pp. 245-280, Burleigh Dodds Science
Publishing, Cambridge, UK, 2023, (ISBN: 978 1 80146 268 6)
Chapter 3 - Improving good agricultural practices related to product safety
on farms: Louise Manning, University of Lincoln, UK; and James Monaghan,
Harper Adams University, UK;
1. Introduction
2. Food Safety Objectives, Performance Objectives, and Performance Criterion
3. GAP in the context of CEA
4. Conclusion
5. References
Chapter taken from: Manning, L. (ed.), Improving standards and certification
in agri-food supply chains: Ensuring safety, sustainability and social
responsibility pp. 319-340, Burleigh Dodds Science Publishing, Cambridge, UK,
2024, (ISBN: 978 1 80146 451 2)
Chapter 4 - Optimizing maize-based cropping systems: Sustainability, good
agricultural practices (GAP) and yield goals: Charles Wortmann, Patricio
Grassini and Roger W. Elmore, University of Nebraska- Lincoln, USA;
1 Introduction
2 Defining sustainable crop production
3 Good agricultural practices
4 Setting targets and measuring performance
5 Case study: improving maize cultivation in the United States, Ethiopia and
Argentina
6 Conclusions
7 References
Chapter taken from: Watson, D. (ed.), Achieving sustainable cultivation of
maize Volume 2: Cultivation techniques, pest and disease control pp. 13-32,
Burleigh Dodds Science Publishing , Cambridge, UK, 2017, (ISBN: 978 1 78676
012 8)
Chapter 5 - Good agricultural practices: an end point or a starting point
for more sustainable banana production?: Charles Staver, Bioversity
International, France;
1 Introduction
2 Why GAP in banana production?
3 GAP-related certification schemes in banana production
4 Is sustainable banana production being operationalized through GAP
certification?
5 Improving GAP for more sustainable banana production
6 Scientific frontiers in bananas and implications for GAP
7 Conclusion: mutual lessons between GAP certification and approaches to
sustainable banana production
8 Where to look for further information
9 References
Chapter taken from: Kema, G. H. J. and Drenth A. (ed.), Achieving sustainable
cultivation of bananas Volume 1: Cultivation techniques, pp. 21-32, Burleigh
Dodds Science Publishing, Cambridge, UK, 2018, (ISBN: 978 1 78676 156 9)
Dr Louise Manning is Professor of Sustainable Agri-food Systems at the Lincoln Institute for Agri-food Technology at the University of Lincoln, UK. With over 30 years of experience in both industry and research, and over 125 peer-reviewed publications, Professor Manning is internationally-renowned for both her research and consultancy work on food safety and quality, agri-food systems, food integrity and crime. She is an Associate Editor for the British Food Journal and is a member of the Board of Trustees for Rothamsted Research. Professor Manning has previously edited Developing smart agri-food supply chains: Using technology to improve safety and quality, published by Burleigh Dodds Science Publishing in 2021.
