What is the Turkish Good Agricultural Practices (İTU) Regulation?

Issued by the Republic of Turkey Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, the Good Agricultural Practices (İTU) Regulation is a national legal standard that promotes agricultural production without harming the environment, human, or animal health. Often considered the localized Turkish equivalent of the GlobalG.A.P. standard, İTU aims to conserve natural resources, ensure traceability in agriculture, and guarantee food safety. It protects not only the crops in the field but also the welfare of farm workers and the quality of the final product reaching the consumer, thereby creating a trust-based supply chain in the domestic market.

Key Technical Criteria of TR İTU Certification

Embracing the "farm to fork" concept, İTU ensures every step of the production process is documented. The technical framework can be summarized as follows:

• Food Safety and Traceability:

  • The seeds, seedlings, fertilizers, and agricultural chemicals (pesticides) used during production must be licensed and applied strictly within legal limits.

  • Every action taken in the field is documented in detail. The harvested product is fully traceable backward to prove which field it came from, who produced it, and what processes it underwent. Food safety is verified through pre-harvest residue analyses.

• Environment and Natural Resource Management:

  • Agriculture based on analysis, rather than guesswork, is mandatory. Fertilization and irrigation programs cannot be established without prior soil and water analyses.

  • The environmentally safe disposal of empty pesticide containers and agricultural waste, as well as the protection of groundwater and surface water sources from contamination, are subject to strict rules.

• Worker Health, Safety, and Welfare:

  • The social rights, hygienic living conditions, and first-aid facilities of agricultural workers are covered under the standard.

  • It is a legal requirement that workers handling agricultural spraying use protective equipment, receive necessary training, and undergo regular health checks.

Why Choose İTU Certification with ETKO?

To supply products to national supermarket chains in the Turkish domestic market and to benefit from the Good Agricultural Practices agricultural subsidies (grants and incentives) offered by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, obtaining an İTU certificate from an authorized body is mandatory. As an established certification body authorized by the Ministry, ETKO uses its team of expert agricultural engineers and auditors to manage your compliance process transparently, swiftly, and reliably. ETKO’s assurance registers your products in the domestic market as "healthy, reliable, and eco-friendly."