RAINFOREST ALLIANCE
POLICY:
Online Traceability
Certificate Holders
Document SA-P-GA-35
Version 1
EnglishBinding from: June 1, 2024
Published on: May 28, 2024

© 2024 Rainforest Alliance. All rights reserved.

ExceptionforTea

The Rainforest Alliance is creating a more sustainable world by using social and market forces toprotect nature and improve the lives of farmers and forest communities.
Name of the document

Document code:

Version:Rainforest Alliance Policy:
Online Traceability
Exception for Tea Certificate Holders
Date of first publication:

Revision date:

Language:
ENGLISH

Valid from date:

Expiration date:June 1, 2024

n/aDeveloped by:Approved by:

Assurance Department

Quality of Implementation, Protocols

Linked to:
SA-S-SD-1-V1.3 Rainforest Alliance 2020 Sustainable Agriculture Standard, Farm Requirements
SA-S-SD-2-V1.3 Rainforest Alliance 2020 Sustainable Agriculture Standard, Supply Chain Requirements
SA-R-GA-1-V1.3 Rainforest Alliance 2020 Certification and Auditing Rules
Replaces:
N/A
Country / Region:
GlobalCrop:

Type of certification:

Tea

Farm and Supply Chain Certification

Applicable to
Farm and Supply Chain Certificate Holders in Tea
Policies are binding. Policies complement and/or supersede related rules or requirements for the parties they areapplicable to.
More information
For more information about the Rainforest Alliance, visit www.rainforest-alliance.org, contact info@ra.org orcontact the Rainforest Alliance Amsterdam Office, De Ruijterkade 6, 1013AA Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Translation Disclaimer
For any question related to the precise meaning of the information contained in the translation, please refer tothe official English version for clarification. Any discrepancies or differences in meaning due to translation are notbinding and have no effect for auditing or certification purposes.

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CONTENTS
Online Traceability Exception .................................................................................................................... 4
1.

Outline of Exception ....................................................................................................................... 4
1.1.

Reporting Requirements for the First Processors ................................................................ 4

1.2.

Auditing requirements for offline traceability .................................................................... 5

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Online Traceability Exception
Due to the complexity and variability of tea supply chains and traceability data gaps between
farm CH and first processor, the Rainforest Alliance is proposing a simplification of tea reporting
requirements in the Rainforest Alliance traceability platform.
Farm and Supply Chain certificate holders in Tea* have been granted an exception to theRainforest Alliance Online Traceability Platform. Details on the scope of the exception andapplicable Certificate Holders are below.
*Note this policy does not apply to Herbs and Spices as defined in Rainforest Alliance Appendix B.

1. Outline of Exception
Farm and supply chain certificate holders are exempted from reporting traceability in theRainforest Alliance online platform. Only those requirements listed below fall into this exception,requirements for paper-based traceability, segregation, etc. will still be required for these actors.

THE ABOVE FARM AND SUPPLY CHAIN CERTIFICATE HOLDERS ARE EXEMPTED FROM THE
FOLLOWING REQUIREMENTS
2.2.1

Volumes sold as certified are recorded in the Rainforest Alliance traceability platform
at the latest two weeks after the end of the quarter within which the shipment tookplace.

2.2.2

Buyers of Rainforest Alliance Certified product have a procedure in place to regularly
verify that transactions in the traceability platform match invoices for certified products
purchased and/or shipped.

2.2.3

Volumes not sold as Rainforest Alliance Certified and/or lost are removed from thetraceability platform within two weeks after the end of the quarter in which theshipment took place or volume was lost.

2.2.5

Shipments that are combined into one transaction include sufficient information (forexample volume, traceability type, invoice numbers, shipment codes and dates) torelate the transaction to the individual shipments.

1.1. Reporting Requirements for the First Processors
The first processors and packers* are required to provide data via the volume declaration form forany certified volume that has not been redeemed or sold forward from their accounts in 2022,
2023, and Q1 2024. This volume declaration shall be submitted on a quarterly basis.
1. MultiTrace Authorization Request Form for Tea.
2. The first processor shall provide the information required to Rainforest Alliance so that theinformation can be transacted on their behalf. The processor must use the request form
above provided by Rainforest Alliance.
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3. Tea supply chain certificate holders are required to provide any additional clarificationneeded once Rainforest Alliance has reviewed the data provided.
*First processors are defined as the organization that mixes or processes different packages ofMade Tea (or Made Tea equivalent weight in the case of instant tea), breaking up the original
garden invoice/chop number into a blend or alternative product. Packers are defined as the final
packers of finished consumer products in the supply chain.

1.2. Auditing requirements for offline traceability
Certificate Holders will continue to be responsible for providing auditors with evidence that
traceability is maintained throughout the process of purchase, receipt, processing, packing,shipping and selling. This includes:
1. Identification of Rainforest Alliance Certified on physical product.
2. Identification of Rainforest Alliance Certified products in purchase and sales
documentation.
3. Maintenance of volume summary.
Auditors will verify that first processors and packers have sent the completed excel template to
Rainforest Alliance on a quarterly basis but will not review the document for accuracy. If thetemplate is not available then the auditor/CB shall issue a nonconformity to requirement 2.2.1.

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