OHAS for Suppliers
‘Being OHAS Certified reassures me that we are complying with current regulation and that we are running a good professional company. The Standards are very thorough so when new legislation comes in we find implementing it much easier and quicker’. Mark Taylor, Allensmore Nurseries
By choosing to join OHAS and becoming a Certified Supplier you will:
- Manage and continuously improve your business processes
- Manage your resources sustainably and reduce your impact on the environment
- Ensure you remain legally compliant
- Ensure you meet customer and supplier requirements
- Demonstrate full traceability for all products and improve plant health
- Have a framework to manage your staff and develop skills within your business
- Become members of a recognised industry body
- Become internationally certified, if required
- Grow and develop a successful business
‘Becoming OHAS Certified meant we understood and valued what we were already doing well, it also helped us to make more improvements across the business. The way we work is now more focused, we know that this will save us time and reduce wastage in the future’. Rory Paton, Pinetops Nursery
OHAS Standards are available for growers, packhouses and growing media producers.
The Standards are written and managed by the Team and a Technical Committee at HTA. This means they are written by and for the horticulture industry.
Grower Standard
The Grower Standards is aimed at both established and developing nurseries. The Standards include the following sections:
- Senior Management Commitment
- Quality Management System
- Cultivation
- Product Development
- Site Standards
- Physical Product Contamination Control
- Transport
- Trading Conditions
- Staff Training & Employment Requirements
- Health & Safety
- Sustainability
The Grower Standard is benchmarked against the GLOBAL G.A.P Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) and is audited by our UKAS accredited certification body NSF.
In addition to the above sections, Members can also choose to be audited against an additional Annex at the same time as their OHAS audit which will give full equivalence to GLOBAL G.A.P. An increasing number of retailers and buyers are seeking this level of certification.
Members who are developing and growing their businesses, and who would prefer to use the OHAS Standards as a business development tool only, may choose to be audited on a Continual Development basis through our audit partner, ADAS.
Packhouse Standard
The Packhouse Standard meets the global needs of the packhouse industry. It is internationally recognised and is the only accredited standard available for packhouses. The Standards include the following sections:
- Senior Management Commitment
- Quality Management System
- Product Development
- Site Standards
- Physical Product Contamination Control
- Transport
- Trading Conditions
- Staff Training & Employment Requirements
- Health & Safety
- Sustainability
The Packhouse Standard is audited by our UKAS accredited certification body NSF.
Growing Media
The Growing Media Producers Standard is good manufacturing practice that has been written specifically for the growing media manufacturer industry. It is divided into three sections:
- Process and Product Control
- Customer Considerations
- Strategic Issues
The Growing Media Standard is audited by our UKAS accredited certification body NSF.
This standard has been reviewed and re-written during 2020 to meet the ever-changing needs of the industry. A new set of standards is being piloted and will be published shortly.
