Togo: Workshop on analysis of survey data and hazards to inform the Good Practice Guide for leafy vegetables

A workshop on “Analysis of survey data and hazards” took place in February 2022 in Tsévié, in the premises of the Regional Directorate of Agriculture, Livestock and Rural Development. The workshop contributed to the development of a Good Practice Guide for leafy vegetables in Togo, and resulted in a draft guide that will be submitted to stakeholders for validation. It brought together the members of the Technical Working Group for the Good Practice Guide, made up of three COLEACP experts, representatives of professional organisations (Association des Producteurs, Transformateurs et Exportateurs de Légumes et Fruits du Togo – APROTELF, FENOMAT), public services (DPV, DFV, ICAT, ITRA) and companies.

The new Good Practice Guide will help those working in vegetable production to produce leafy vegetables under better sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) conditions, with optimal commercial quality of the product through the harmonisation of current specifications with international SPS standards, commercial quality criteria adopted by the markets, and the adoption of good agricultural practices, good phytosanitary practices and good hygiene practices based on the hazard analysis and critical control points (HACCP) approach.

The Technical Working Group met to:

• review and correct production patterns, and validate the data collected in the field
• analyse practices and identify possible hazards in the chain at each stage of the production and/or processing process
• define limit values for each hazard
• propose realistic control measures to be implemented
• propose “self-checks” to be carried out in the company and at sector level
• verify the economic feasibility of the proposed measures for each main market identified (local, regional, international)
• analyse the shortcomings of local regulations in the face of international SPS requirements.

This activity was organised within the framework of the Project for the Strengthening of the National Phytosanitary Control and Certification System for Fruits and Vegetables in Togo, funded by the Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF) and implemented by COLEACP.