Welcome

Quality management for smallholders is a program by Fair Trade Original, Twin and FAQ.

The program supports producer partners in combining different voluntary and obligatory market requirements into one integrated management system, thus ensuring the quality of product and services, ensuring the integrity of the market chain, and justifying a chosen level of traceability. With that, the project changes the initial ICS focus on control and compliance towards a wider and pro-active integrated quality management with a continuous process approach.

The project was piloted with two coffee producer partners in Tanzania and Mexico in 2006. It builds further on the organic ICS system, adding modules on FLO fair trade compliance, product quality and safety, and service provision. The IQMS project uses ISO 22000 risk analysis as an analytical tool to support the process of setting up documentation, internal monitoring and reporting.

For the Organic module, the project incorporates the ICS manuals as made available by IFOAM, and IMO. For the Fair Trade module, the project works with the Fair Trade ICS that was developed by Fair Trade Original in conjunction with Crecer from Guatemala . This model has been based on FLO and IFAT standards.

The pilots of 2006 and follow up implementations with other producers in Latin America and Afrika have shown that after a proper training and guidance, producer organisations are enthusiastic about the integrated and process driven approach. The shift from a control and compliance focus, towards integrated management is difficult and needs time and proper training. Producer organizations reported that the model amongst others:

Enabled organisations to learn more about FLO standards;
Makes the change to an organic system easier;
Makes the implementation of a new financial and accounting system easier;
Made it easier for organisations to implement product quality control systems and traceability.
That the risk analys in conjunction with flow charting allow for a quick and profound analysis of the organization and its operations.
Gives the management the tools to better manage their organization.
Gives the organization the tools and the knowledge to pro-actively react to changing standards and discuss with inspectors.

The pilot experience has shown, that after initial (substantial) investment in developing policies, documentation, and registration of members, there is an ongoing challenge to train staff. After all, management systems are powered by humans. Twin/FTO�s QMS approach addresses this topic by preparing practical staff training curriculums for staff in different levels of the organisation.