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On 1 August 2021, a new version of the MPS-ABC standard comes into effect: MPS-ABC v16.1. Although some changes have been made to a number of criteria in this version, this does not mean that the requirements have been tightened up. For growers who are already fully compliant with v16, the new version will not require any changes to be made to working methods. The new standard can be found here.
The main changes in MPS-ABC v16.1 compared with the current version are as follows:
Rented and contract cultivation
Records for rented and contract cultivation sites can be entered once every four weeks instead of on an application basis.
Storage of non-authorised agents
If agents cannot be disposed of in an appropriate manner, they may remain on the premises under certain conditions.
IPM plan
The participant does not have to provide images of pests themselves, but can refer to tools, databases, posters or other information sources.
Purchase of additional end products
Additional end products purchased can have a lower qualification than your company qualification, provided this is clearly visible to the customer.
General Information Form
It is not necessary to review the information form annually, although it must be up-to-date at all times.
Purchase of starting material
You are only required to keep records of starting material if you want to qualify for the additional qualification points. You can either keep these records in the MPS record-keeping environment or in your own accounting system.
Stock
The requirements for the use of the stock module are being dropped because it is an optional module.
Water usage
Water usage is recorded per period instead of on the date of application.
Chemical soil disinfection
The entire chemical soil disinfection arrangement is being dropped.
Additionally, the sanction policy in MPS-ABC v16.1 has been made clearer to prevent NQ status from being imposed too soon if a small part of your records is missing. This adjustment will give you more time to add to records before this has any real impact on your qualification status.