Retailers and brands are working diligently across their supply chains to ensure that food and non-food products can stay on shelves and available to the public. Yes, there has been panic buying but from what I’ve seen, retailers are really stepping up to the mark to ensure all elements of society get what they need. They are implementing shopping hours for those working in the NHS and for the elderly, they are donating to food banks, and they are working tirelessly to keep shelves stocked.

Another thing that retailers are worried about is making sure that products which are certified (think Fairtrade, Red Tractor, and others) continue to meet those certification standards. This means continuing, where possible, to get products certified and factories where they are made audited. In these uncertain times, it has become more difficult to travel to do these audits and, in some cases, unsafe to do so. This has meant there that has been some disruption in supply chains and in some cases an uncertainty of when audits can take place whilst this pandemic continues. Retailers are in close dialogue with the certification schemes to ensure standards don’t slip, whilst not putting auditors and others at greater risk.

There is high demand for certain products from regions around the world, so retailers are taking all measures necessary to continue the flow of products whilst respecting the fundamental rights and freedoms of workers throughout the supply chain and the safety and legality of those products.

Below is a list of certification and audit schemes and will be updated throughout:

• Fairtrade is asking retailers to have flexible decision making on the use of Fairtrade Premium and to continue supporting Fairtrade producers by meeting contractual terms and investing in relationships with them. Their full statement can be found here.
• Red Tractor is stressing the critical importance of having up-to-date contingency plans in place whilst ensuring all farming duties are carried out including safeguarding the welfare of their animals. Their full statement can be found here.
• BM Trada is looking to conduct remote/desk audits where they are not able to do a site visit and attempting to minimise business disruption as much as possible. Their full statement can be found here.
• Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) has requested a three-month license extension for Palmtrace and its other Certification Bodies. They are deciding on whether on-site or remote audits should be conducted but stresses the necessity to protect the health of those involved in the certification process. Their full statement can be found here.
• Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) has decided an automatic six-month extension shall be applied to fishery certificates and associated timelines, including deadlines for client action plans and milestones. Their full statement can be found here.
• PEFC is considering the risks related to cases where planning/conducting of the audit is not easy because reaching the organization's premises may be difficult or inadvisable for the auditor (i.e. restrictions because of national or local rules, health risks, flight cancellations, etc.) Their full statement can be found here.
• Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) has said where there is a demonstrated security risk, on-site audits can be replaced by desk-audit, as an exceptional event and is valid to 31 December 2020. Their full statement can be found here.
• BSi have released a statement with regards to medical devices and their assessments and are proceeding with a combination of remote and deferred assessments depending on the type of visit and associated risk. Their full statement can be found here.
• BRCGS is ensuring to play a full and supportive role within the global food and drink industry and to reduce stress on sites. They have decided to remove the self-assessment and remote audit element from the certificate extension process. Their full statement can be found here and revised guidance here.
• The Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) are ensuring that trust and confidence in the food and drink supply chain remains high during these uncertain times. They highlighted the importance of consistent and collective action and confirmed that all twelve certification programme owners (CPOs) that have GFSI-recognised programmes have fully aligned to the GFSI position. Their full statement can be found here.
• United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) assessments will be conducted as remote assessment until at least 31st July 2020 and their Training Courses will now be Virtual Instructor-Led Training (VILT). They are producing new guidance and publication documents for customers and their full statement can be found here.
• Round Table Responsible Soy (RTRS): is evaluating measures to enable continued operation of the assurance system and assessment of RTRS standards requirements by reinforcing on-line operations and audits, while remaining robust and strict. Their full statement can be found here.