Well-known producers of fruits and table grapes in the Republic of Moldova SC Farm-Prod SRL, Ionex-Trans SRL, and Beyaz Salkim SRL have received SMETA certificates. Earlier, according to EastFruit, these agricultural enterprises, among 40 other fruit-growing farms, were certified and have been annually confirming GRASP social responsibility certificates (a standard adjacent to GLOBALG.A.P.) for several years. This year, these enterprises were the first in the agrarian sector of Moldova to host the SMETA Ethical Trading Audit, carried out by members of the Sedex Associated Auditor Group (AAG), based on the recommendations of the International Labor Organization. The SMETA certificate guarantees the rights and good working conditions of employees.
As Ion Tulei, manager of SC Farm-Prod SRL, noted at the certificate presentation ceremony, the SMETA certificate is the document that foreign buyers of fruits and vegetables request in the first place, along with product safety and quality certificates. “However, for example, our German partners took the message that we passed the SMETA audit with interest and respect,” says the quoted source. “Now, they say, they will be able to re-export our company’s products to Switzerland and the Scandinavian countries, which pay special attention to ethical standards for employees.”
Moldovan agricultural producers were assisted in passing the SMETA audit by the USAID-funded Competitiveness and Agricultural Sustainability in Moldova Project.
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