All farms that grow fresh produce despite the size of the operation or the commodity will have to certify they meet Good Agricultural Practices by September as a condition to sell to Wegmans Food Markets Inc., company representatives who shared the retailer's program for small growers said during a May 29 webinar.

The Rochester, NY-based retailer believes all growers, whether running one-acre or 900-acre operations, should be audited to verify they are applying GAPs, said William Pool, produce safety manager for Wegmans, who spoke during an 80-minute webinar sponsored by the Food Marketing Institute.

"If selling fresh produce, by September 2013, you are going to need to have at a minimum a GAP audit on record with us demonstrating you've got things in place that reduce or minimize the potential for contamination of product," Pool said.

Unlike other retailers, however, Wegmans believes one audit is all that's needed for everything coming off the farm, he said.

The retailer has been phasing in the GAP audit requirements over several years, with all high-risk commodities required to meet GAP guidelines in 2008.

The well-publicized Jensen Farms listeria outbreak involving cantaloupe in 2011 caused Wegmans to rethink its approach, and the company decided to require GAP audits for more items, such as broccoli, cauliflower and mushrooms.

By September 2013, all other produce, including citrus, apples, onions and potatoes, must be certified as GAP-compliant to be sold at Wegmans.

Concerned about food safety at small farms, Wegmans teamed up with Cornell University to begin training programs for New York growers starting in 2005.

"Training and inquiring about food-safety practices on small farms were not always welcome with open arms," he said.

Wegmans knew it would take time to become compliant. "We really didn't set deadlines," he said.

Training seminars with Cornell, other universities and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, all working as partners, help small growers recognize the importance of food safety. Wegmans does not charge for growers to undergo training; rather, it picks up the cost of training materials and tries to schedule the seminars during off season months.

During training seminars, the company focuses on key food-safety issues such as water, manure, worker hygiene and writing a food-safety plan. Because growers view developing a food-safety plan as daunting, Wegmans enlisted a small grower to discuss steps he took to develop a food safety plan.

Some states are using specialty crop funding to help offset the cost of audits for small growers. Wegmans has helped growers by chipping in $400 for audits, and that strengthens the relationship with the supplier, Pool said.

And while an audit by itself doesn't guarantee safety, "It tells me the grower is capable of doing things right and has things in place to produce safe product," he said.

Dave Corsi, vice president at produce and floral at Wegmans, said all businesses should consider requiring suppliers be GAP-certified.

During the webinar, Corsi took the opportunity to express opposition to language in the current FDA Food Safety Modernization Act that exempts small growers from the federal food-safety law.

"We have today over 540 small growers that we work with," he said.

Since 2006, the retailer has lost one grower based on Wegmans food-safety requirements, and that shows small growers can follow food-safety plans and these plans can be verified through audits, Corsi said.