Management Annex

What is this document about?

This annex includes additional binding content related to the implementation of the Requirements in the Management Chapter of the Rainforest Alliance Standards. This document includes:

• Additional details on requirements 1.2.10 and 1.2.11 on collection of geolocation data.

• Additional details on requirement 1.3.3 on training of internal inspectors.

• Additional details on requirement 1.4.1 on internal inspections.

When and how to use this document?

This document offers Certificate Holders additional information on implementing the Rainforest Alliance Standards. Certification Bodies can also use it to understand the implementation requirements.  

Changes in update from v1 to v1.1

1. Collecting Geolocation Data

1.1 Introduction

As required by requirements 1.2.10 and 1.2.11 of the Rainforest Alliance Standards, Certificate Holders must provide geolocation data to the Rainforest Alliance platform.

This section contains additional information on complying with these requirements.

1.2 Geolocation Data Collection Requirements

Certificate Holders are responsible for providing geolocation data of all farm units in the form of location points and polygons. For non-agricultural farm units, buildings, facilities, conservation set-asides like riparian buffer zones, water bodies, and other related features, shall also be included. Geolocation data must also be provided for farm units growing non-certified crops.

For small farms in group certification, Rainforest Alliance Standards require the following: By the first certification audit, 35% of farms must have their geolocation data as polygons. By the second audit, all farm units' geolocation data must be polygons.  

In sections 1.3 and 1.4 there is a summary of the methods that Certificate Holders may use for collecting location points and polygons. Geolocation data must meet all the format requirements of this document before being uploaded into the Rainforest Alliance Platform.

The table below outlines the required geolocation data collection. Farm units may be situated at various distances from one another and do not need to be adjacent.

_{Table 1. Geolocation data collection requirements for farms.}

1.3 Location Points

Location points must be collected as follows:

1. Coordinates must be taken as close as possible to the center of the farm/farm unit, considering the internal farm conditions (e.g., high cliffs, rivers, irregular and dangerous terrain).

2. The location of the point must be marked by the person taking the coordinates (e.g., stick in the ground, marking a nearby tree etc.) This is to ensure that the same location is used by internal inspectors or external auditors for verification of the data.

3. The latitude and longitude coordinates must be correctly reported:

   1. Latitude and longitude coordinates must be collected using the current World Geodetic System (WGS 84).

   2. As number format, containing only numerical values or characters. Characters such as the degrees symbol (°) are not allowed.

   3. As decimal degrees coordinate, not as DMS or any other such format.

   4. With at least 4 decimals (i.e., Latitude 9.7611; Longitude –84.1872).

   5. With correct positive and negative values. Points in the southern hemisphere have negative latitudes, and points in the northern hemisphere have positive latitudes. Points in the western hemisphere have negative longitudes, and points in the eastern hemisphere have positive longitudes. However, it is not necessary to include a “+” sign, only the negative sign “- “(e.g. latitude: 9.7611; longitude: -84.1872).

4. Transposed recording of the latitude and longitude values should be avoided.

5. The coordinates must be provided in the Rainforest Alliance Platform or any other tool indicated by the Rainforest Alliance and using the template(s) required by the Rainforest Alliance.

6. Each farm unit data point submitted in the platform must have a unique farm unit ID.

1.4 Polygons

For base requirements 1.2.10 and 1.2.11, polygons must be provided, see also table 1 above.

Each farm unit polygon submitted in the Rainforest Alliance platform must have a unique farm unit ID.

Certificate Holders can collect polygons using either of the two methodologies set out below. For detailed instructions, see Rainforest Alliance Guidance D on geolocation data and risk maps.

1.4.1 Polygons based on reference location points

All reference points for the polygon data must be gathered in the field. Polygon data derived solely from a paper or digital map is not accurate and, therefore, not acceptable. After collecting the polygon reference points in the field, the polygon can be created using GIS-based software or similar tools.

1.4.2 Polygons collected in the field

Farm boundary polygons collected in the field shall be reviewed using GIS software, such as QGIS, Google My Maps, or Google Earth Pro, to identify and correct any inconsistencies.

Guidance documents with more information on how to use these tools are available on the Rainforest Alliance website: 2020 Certification Program | Rainforest Alliance.

Additional requirements regarding farm unit polygons:

• Farm unit polygons shall not overlap.

• Farm unit polygons next to each other may share a common boundary.

• Boundaries that follow features that are easy to see in the imagery (such as roads and rivers) can be used to fine-tune the polygon mapping.

Before submitting the polygons to the Rainforest Alliance platform, the correct farm unit ID must be included with the polygon.

1.5 Data Reporting

Table 2 shows the required file types and formats for reporting geolocation data on the Rainforest Alliance platform.

_{Table 2. Accepted formats and templates for geolocation data}

Other considerations:

1. When large farms are part of a group, requirement 1.2.11 is applicable to these large farms. The provided KML/ GeoJSON file shall contain the polygons of all the large farms that are part of the group.

2. When preparing for the first audit, the Certificate Holder must upload the files mentioned in table 2 above to the Rainforest Alliance platform.

3. A Certificate Holder can only provide additional polygon files after they have already provided an approved Group Member Registry in the Rainforest Alliance platform.

When providing the location points, the following data points must be provided for each farm unit:

• Internal Farm ID (to identify the farm as part of the group).

• Farm unit ID (to link the farm unit to the farm it belongs to).

• Farm unit area (hectares).

• Latitude coordinates (DD format).

• Longitude coordinates (DD format).

When providing polygons via either a KML or GeoJSON files, the following must be ensured for each farm unit:

• Polygons are accompanied with a unique farm unit ID.

• Before uploading the polygon, the farm unit must be already registered in the farm information section of the Rainforest Alliance platform. (For group certification the farm information is populated automatically from the information provided in the Group Member Registry).

2. Internal Inspections

2.1 Scope of Internal Inspections

Base requirement 1.4.1 of the Rainforest Alliance Standards requires management to set up an internal inspection system to ensure implementation of the requirements of the Rainforest Alliance Standards across all members of the group. Management must provide all the necessary resources to ensure the proper functioning of the internal inspection system.

The management of certificate holders entering the certification program must ensure that all actors within the scope of certification are internally inspected against all applicable requirements of the standard before the first certification audit.

For subsequent audits, internal inspections are based on risk and the results of previous internal inspections and external audits.

Additionally, the scope for subsequent internal inspections is outlined in the table below:

_{Table 3. Internal inspections scope per farm type and structure.}

Note: all new members of a farm group need to be fully inspected against all applicable requirements of the standard before the external audit.

2.2 Training of Internal Inspectors

Management must ensure that internal inspectors are adequately trained to carry out quality internal inspections. The trainings shall be conducted by competent professionals with expert knowledge of the implementation and auditing of the Rainforest Alliance Standards.

Management must also ensure that all internal inspectors have taken all mandated courses on the Rainforest Alliance Learning Network and completed the required evaluations. Additionally, management is required to conduct annual training on proper internal inspection practices for all inspectors, including yearly evaluations as per requirement 1.3.3.

Other information

Date of first publication of this document (v 1.0): July 1^st, 2022.

Documents indicated as “binding” must be complied with for certification. Documents indicated as “non-binding” provide non-mandatory information to help readers understand and implement requirements and other binding content.

Translation Disclaimer

For any question related to the precise meaning of the information in a translation, consult the official English version for clarification. Any errors or differences in meaning due to translation are not binding and have no effect for auditing or certification purposes.

Reproduction, modification, distribution, or republication of this content is strictly forbidden without prior written consent from Rainforest Alliance.

More information?

For help in obtaining a Rainforest Alliance certificate reach out to our Customer Success team at customersuccess@ra.org.

For more information about Rainforest Alliance, visit http://www.rainforest-alliance.org contact info@ra.org or the Rainforest Alliance Amsterdam Office, De Ruijterkade 6, 1013AA Amsterdam, The Netherlands.