Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) is a globally recognized concept and a set of voluntary guidelines, not a single act or scheme, that codifies agricultural practices at the farm level. It was developed in recent years, notably with a paper from the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) in 2003, to address the problems of a rapidly globalizing food economy, concerns over food safety, and the environmental sustainability of agriculture. The core problem it solves is ensuring safe, quality food while promoting sustainable and responsible farming methods.
GAP is built on four fundamental pillars: economic viability, environmental sustainability, social acceptability, and food safety and quality. Its mechanism involves providing guidelines and standards for the entire production process, from soil management to harvest and delivery. Key provisions include maintaining soil health, judicious water management, minimizing chemical inputs, implementing Integrated Pest Management, and ensuring worker health and safety. Traceability through detailed documentation of farm history and operations is also a critical requirement.
In India, GAP connects to the national certification scheme called India GAP (or INDGAP), which is a structured framework developed by the Quality Council of India (QCI). The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) also formulated IS 15930 (Part 1) : 2010 for crop-based GAP, aligning control points with GlobalGAP but basing compliance criteria on Indian practices. India GAP is a voluntary scheme that aims to eliminate contamination risks from pesticides and other residues, aligning with international standards like ISO/IEC 17065:2012. The concept has not been replaced, but rather formalized and adapted in India through schemes like Bharat GAP and INDGAP to suit the needs of Indian farmers and facilitate both domestic and international trade.