JGAP Remote Audit Guidelines(Agricultural Products)

Ver. 3

Date of Issue: January 10, 2024
Date of Operation: May 10,2024

Table of ContentsPurpose ................................................................................................................................................................ 1
1. Definitions of Terms...................................................................................................................................... 1
2. Requirements ................................................................................................................................................. 1
3. Scope ................................................................................................................................................................ 1
4. Certification Bodies and Auditors ............................................................................................................. 2
5. Timing, man-hour, and period of audit .................................................................................................... 2
6. Security ............................................................................................................................................................ 2
7. Implementation procedures ........................................................................................................................ 3
8. Activities after Audit ..................................................................................................................................... 5
9. Registration ..................................................................................................................................................... 5
Record of Revisions .......................................................................................................................................... 5

Purpose
These guidelines stipulate points of remote audit under the JGAP certification program (fruits andvegetables, grains, and tea) operated by Japan GAP Foundation (JGF) in accordance with : IAF
Mandatory Document for the Use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for
Auditing/Assessment Purposes（IAF MD4: 2023） and JGAP General Rules. It is backed by theadvancement of audit and certification methods using ICT devices and avoidance of the risk ofCOVID-19 transmission.

1. Definitions of Terms(1) Information Communication Technology (ICT)ICT is the use of technology for gathering, storing, retrieving, processing, analyzing andtransmitting information. It includes software and hardware such as smartphones, handheld
devices, laptop computers, desktop computers, drones, video cameras, wearable technology,
artificial intelligence, and others. (quoted from IAF MD4:2023).
(2) Remote audit
Full remote audit or partly remote audit from places other than farms by auditors using ICT
devices. It is essentially required that a certification body (CB) and a farm can communicatesmoothly via a web conference system or the like, that is, the environment should allow the voice
and image of participants to be conveyed immediately and mutually and should allow the parties
concerned to express opinions accurately, mutually and sufficiently in a timely manner.
(3) On-site audit
Face-to-face audit with an auditor, a farmer, and the group administration involved. It is to be
implemented at the field and/or facilities related to audit.

2. Requirements
As one of the requirements, the environment should allow the voice and image of participants
to be conveyed immediately and mutually and should allow the parties concerned to express
opinions accurately, mutually and sufficiently in a timely manner. Accordingly, if a remote audit is
not permitted due to the defect of equipment in the audit process, an additional on-site audit will
be required.
In addition, images (photos) should be sent and received as well as image-based
communications, and it is necessary to secure the sufficient precision of audit using images andsound.

3. Scope
The guidelines are applicable to all remote audit for individuals and groups of JGAP (fruits andvegetables, grains, and tea).
1However, remote audits are not applicable if any of the following applies to a farm. In the caseof emergency, application conditions may be defined separately.
(1) Initial audit(2) If a farm was required to make corrections on essential items at 10% or more in the lastaudit(3) If a farm had been conducted remote audit in the last audit

4. Certification Bodies and Auditors
CBs should document the proceedings of assessing auditors' capabilities related to remote
audits and judge whether audits can be performed remotely.
Auditors are required to have the following capabilities:(1) ICT devices can be fully used for remote audit.
(2) Auditors have been fully trained for remote audit, being capable of performing remote
audit, and having an understanding of the risk in the precision of information collected throughremote audit.
(3) Auditors understand the risk related to security associated with remote audit.
Furthermore, the auditor conducting the remote audit should be the same auditor who
conducted the last audit if possible.

5. Timing, man-hour, and period of audit
5.1 Timing of audit
Requirements for timing of audit are shown in JGAP General Rules.
5.2 Man-hour of audit
If the duration of audit is shorter than the standard man-hour of audit as the total of a remote
audit and an on-site audit, a CB should justify why the duration is shortened.
5.3 Interval between connection test and audit
A remote audit is to be performed within four weeks after a connection test. In the case ofpartly remote audit, a remote audit should take place prior to an on-site audit.

6. Security
6.1 Ensuring Security
CBs should take measures to ensure information confidentiality throughout an audit, including
planning, reporting, and follow-up.
6.2 Agreement on Security
CBs and farms should agree on the measures to protect the information relating to audit suchas security, data, sound recordings, and screenshots, and where responsibility lies prior to audit.
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CBs and farms should agree on scope, purposes of use, and time of discarding records if theyuse the video/sound recording function of a remote audit tool.
An agreement on security should be executed in writing, and a written agreement should beretained. Without a written agreement on security, remote audit will not be permitted.

7. Implementation procedures
7.1 Application for Audit
Fill in an audit application form by providing the following information.
(1) Equipment, platform, and others used for remote audits(2) Participants in audit(3) Frequency of online meetings(4) State of use of ICT, such as the cloud system used for GAP registration
7.2 Materials to be submitted
Farmers should submit the following to certification bodies in advance.
(1) Lists of fields and facilities(2) Maps of fields and facilities(3) Layout diagram of facilities handling agricultural products (blueprinting) (if all of the audits
are implemented remotely)(4) Results of risk assessment for the harvesting process and the agricultural producthandling process(5) Results of self-assessment and results of improvements of items judged non-conforming
in self-assessment
7.3 Checking of documents and identification of items for careful auditing
CBs should check submitted documents and materials.
CBs should identify the risk that can affect remote audit and the risk of use of ICT based on
results of prior check of farms and submitted materials, understand the items for careful auditing(including the items to be checked at an on-site audit), and keep records.
7.4 Connection test
The same auditor should implement a connection test, a remote audit, and an on-site audit.
Auditors should check the communication environment, images, and precision of images bychecking documents and the actual site.
7.5 Determining whether remote auditing is permitted
CBs should assess risks of remote audit from the following viewpoints with reference toinformation about remote audit obtained from 7.1 audit application form, 7.2 submitted materials,
and 7.4 connection test, and judge whether remote audit is permitted. They should interview

3farmers on risk assessment if necessary. They should record risk assessment results andjudgement results in a series of remote audit.
(1) Request for corrections in the last audit(2) ICT devices to be used and communication environment (baud rate and noise)(3) The capability of using ICT devices and communication environment of the auditor and thefarmer(4) Ensuring of information security and confidentiality
7.6 Formulation of audit plans
CBs should decide how ICT should be used in remote and on-site audit and formulate an audit
plan.
An audit plan should reflect results of identification of the items for careful auditing as stated in
7.3.
7.7 Performance of remote audit
7.7.1 Participating staff on a farm
At least two persons from the farm should participate in a remote audit as a rule.
(One of them shall check the safety of the person who shoots the site with an ICT device andassist with document examination.)7.7.2 Environment
A quiet spot should be chosen to facilitate transmission of sound and images.
A headset or external microphone is preferable (a microphone attached to a laptop is notrecommended).
7.7.3 Performance of remote audit
A remote audit should be implemented (for example, starting, terminating, and reporting ofaudit results) in accordance with JGAP General Rules and follow a formulated plan as much aspossible.
An audit report should state that an audit was implemented remotely, why an audit wasimplemented remotely, hours of starting/finishing an audit, and participants. It should include any
technical issues.
7.7.4 Discontinuation of remote auditA remote audit should be discontinued and records should be kept if it cannot be continued
due to hindrances including the communication situation.
Records should include causes of discontinuation, control points and results that are checked
by a remote audit until discontinuation.
7.8 On-site audit
An on-site audit should be implemented according to an audit plan and performed for thecontrol points that have been judged necessary to be checked onsite in a remote audit.
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8. Activities after Audit
Auditors should discard records obtained via the video/sound recording function of the remote
audit tool after judgment of an audit is terminated.

9. Registration
CBs should report audit information to the JGF as remote audits, and JGF should record
certified farms/groups as remote audits.
＊Supplementary provisionThis guideline will be invalid when new process for “remote audit” is established.

Record of Revisions
VersionDate of Update

Abstract

Ver.1

Oct.7, 2020

JGAP remote audit guideline was createdVer.1.1

Oct.7, 2021

Deadline for conducting all audits by remote audit
was deleted

Ver.2

Mar.24, 2023

Revised for the revision of JGAP2022

Ver.3

Jan. 10, 2024

Since

theCOVID-19

pandemic

isover,theconditions of remote audit should be clarified.
The scope was changed from IAF MD4:2022 to IAF
MD4 2023.
The reason of remote audits (Point 2.1) was deleted.
The scope (Point 3) was changed as following:・All of the audits could be conducted remotely・Remote audit is not applicable if a farm got 10%
or more NCs in the previous audit
Additional requirements of auditors (Point 4) wereadded.

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Japan GAP Foundation

3-29 Kioicho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-0094, Japan
Floor 4, Nippon Agricultural Research Institute Bldg.
URL: https://jgap.jp