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INDUSTRY SELF-REGULATION - AUDITING AND KFC CODE OF PRACTICE
KFC has developed a Code of Practice that is fully benched marked to GlobalGAP and is under going a bench marking/mutual recognition with; Tescos Nature, FFP and FLP, MPS-SQ, MPS-Social, MPS-ABC and Rainforest. KFC is also an agent for Kenya Bureau of Standards KS-1758. Therefore, one KFC Silver audit will confer certification to all afore mentioned schemes hence saving precious time and resources.

Industry Self-regulation is administered through the KFC Code.  The Council Certification operates on two levels: Silver and Gold Certification Standards. Both KFC Codes of Practice detail the Standards that are required from its members.   Apart from yearly Certification audits, KFC also carries out unannounced audits on 10% of our member farms every year. KFC Code of Practice is reviewed at least every two years, to embrace changes of social, environmental, statutory and international requirements. 

In 2007, KFC was accredited by the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) to Audit flower growers and collect standard levy fees on behalf of KEBS.   The KFC Code was also accredited with GlobalGAP "Cut-flowers and Ornamental" equivalence status in 2005 after successful benchmarking.  

In October 2008, KFC achieved “Products Certification Body” status through the South African National Accreditation System (SANAS), having successfully complied with the ISO/IEC Guide 65:1996 requirements. To support this development, the KFC has developed an interactive data base, to ease effective and efficient communication with Members. This is a great achievement for the Council, as we strive to serve and steward the floriculture industry in Kenya.

In September 2006, KFC also gained provisional recognition by Tesco Supermarkets after an assessment of KFC auditing standards by the UK based supermarket chain. This recognition ensures that the operational procedures of the KFC Code of Practice comply with Tesco consumer standards under the Ethical Trade Initiative.

The KFC CoP in addition embraces more than 23 different Government statutes relevant to floriculture, due reference to the principles of the International Labour Organization (ILO) International Code of Conduct (ICC), Ethical Trade Initiatives (ETI) in addition to the Horticulture Ethical Business Initiatives. By so doing, KFC ensures that growers comply with the ever changing international and local standards. The main thrust of the KFC CoP is worker welfare, safety and health at the workplace, CSR, environmental protection, good agricultural practices, and quality management.


What does an Audit involve?

a) Review
  1. A review of all documents and records required in the Silver or Gold Code of Practice, including terms and conditions of employment, crop protection practices, post harvest, quality control, maintenance of health and safety and hygiene, nursery stock propagation, traceability of all activities, training of workers, medical care, provision of personal protective equipment, waste disposal, company policies, risk assessment, emergency procedures, work instructions, internal audits, stock records among others.

b) Inspection
  1. An inspection of all facilities on the farm including crop production, pack houses, greenhouses, washing facilities, agrochemical stores, central spray stations, fertigation units, waste disposal areas, machinery safe operation procedures, clinics or hospitals, housing units, clean drinking water, reservoirs, irrigation distribution, provision of sanitary services and hygiene, drainage systems, flora and fauna conservation, pollution control systems such as soak away pits, etc.
  2. Interviews of managers and supervisors.
  3. Interviews of farm workers sampled randomly from various departments of the farm.

c) Reporting
  1. A report is given at the end of the audit, detailing the Corrective Actions Requests that require to be implemented before the company can be certified. This report is signed by the company management and KFC auditors.
The Silver Standard

The Silver Standard is the basic requirement for all members of the KFC. In 2005, the 7th Edition of the KFC Silver Standard was awarded "GlobalGAP Equivalent" status for Cut flowers and Ornamentals after successful benchmarking.   The current edition (8th Edition) is at the advanced stages of benchmarking to Globalgap Flowers and Ornamentals.

The Silver Standard outlines the following requirements:
  1. Employee health and safety: Provision of safe working environment, personal protective equipment,
  2. Adequate supervision and direction at work.
  3. General worker welfare covering employment contracts, job descriptions, wages, housing, safe transportation, medical provision, annual leave, maternity leave, pro-rata leave and other terms and conditions of employment.
  4. Training of all farm staff on the Safe Use of Pesticides, Health and Safety, First Aid and Hygiene.
  5. Social accountability issues - freedom of association and collective bargaining, gender and equity committees, harassment prevention mechanisms, child labor, equal pay for equal work and grievance handling
  6. Good agricultural practices (GAP) including all EUREPGAP Cut Flowers and Ornamentals requirements.
  7. Crop protection strategies including integrated pest management (IPM), resistance management to crop diseases and pest tolerance
  8. Safe transportation, storage, and usage of pesticides
  9. Good management and safe disposal of all farm wastes.
  10. Environmental Management Plan incorporating general protection of the natural environment, which includes water, air, land, flora and fauna. Management of energy, water, wastes, soil, fertilizer, nitrogen fertilizer plan, with baselines of these aspects and also outlining the positive and negative aspects of the agricultural, environmental and social activities of the farm.
  11. Proper record keeping and documentation of all aspects in crop production and export to ensure traceability
  12. An annual internal audit of all clauses of the KFC code of practice.

Auditing the Silver Standard

A new member is required to comply with the Silver Code of Practice within one year from the date of joining.  A compliance audit is done within 6 months from the date of joining.  A member remains a Non-certified Member until all the requirements in the current Silver Code of Practice are satisfactorily met: use of the KFC Silver "Environment Friendly" Logo is strictly restricted to certified members. New members undergo a Pre-audit to establish the status of the farm and identify issues requiring corrective action.  All non-conformities found during the audit are presented in a corrective action request form which is signed by the company management and the KFC auditors.

A follow-up audit is conducted at the farm to verify the implementation of the corrective actions. If a member company is found to have satisfactorily addressed 100% of the corrective actions raised during the compliance audit, it is recommended to the Certification Committee who can then approve Silver certification. To maintain professionalism, KFC audit procedures are evaluated by other Certification Bodies that are qualified and recognized by the International Accreditation Forum such as SANAS.  


The Gold Standard

Gold Standard Code of Practice is the highest certification of the Council. It awards members with the highest accreditation for environmental, health & safety, good agricultural practices and quality management systems, applied and monitored daily.  The Gold Standard Code of Practice is based on the ISO 14001 framework and other similar environmental systems.

Some of the requirements of the Gold Standard include:
  1. Formulation and implementation of company policies on environmental protection, safety and health, good agricultural practices and corporate social responsibility.
  2. Abstention from the use of any WHO class I pesticides.
  3. The observation of standard set limits on the presence of pesticides, nitrate and phosphate fertilizers used per year on different crops.
  4. Managers of fertilizer application must be at least FACTS trained or equivalent, while those for pesticides should be at least BASICS trained.
  5. Installation of constructed wetlands for waste water treatment.
  6. Conduct energy audits yearly.
  7. Recycling of all waste water from non-soil media.
  8. Provision of Children Day Cares/Crèche or time off for lactating mothers
  9. Members must practically embrace corporate social responsibility activities which include but are not limited to the twelve requirements outlined in the SCR clause, e.g. assisting the neighboring community in projects that promote the social well-being of the society and improve the development of the areas they operate in.

Auditing the Gold Standard

Only Silver Certified members are eligible for Gold Certification. The Gold Standard audit is carried out by an independent third party auditor for instance BVKL, SGS, etc.   The core requirement is the formulation and implementation of company policies on environmental protection, health and safety, good agricultural practices and corporate social responsibility. The policies must be internalized, communicated, applied and monitored at all levels of operation.  

The policies must include:
  1. Defined overall responsibilities with clear reporting lines.
  2. Pesticide and IPM application management.
  3. Fertilizer usage management.
  4. Soil and Substrate management.
  5. Water management.
  6. Flora and fauna management.
  7. Waste management.
  8. Energy management.
  9. Machinery and vehicle maintenance management.
  10. Health and safety management.
  11. Corporate Social Responsibility management.
When a farm applies for Gold Certification, all policies, procedures risk assessment and all the normative documents pertaining to the implementation of this standard must be submitted to KFC to verify whether they meet the standard's requirements.   A pre-audit is them conducted on site by KFC auditors to identify any gaps to certification. A Certification audit is thereafter conducted by an independent third party auditor. If successful a certification recommendation is forwarded by the third party auditor to the KFC certification committee.   All other auditing procedures for the Silver Standard then apply to the Gold Standard.
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