Food assurance schemes Guidance Notes

Thursday 21 August 2003

The Agency believes that food assurance schemes have the potential to deliver a range of benefits for consumers, including contributing to the range of choice of foods produced in different ways.

However, Agency research and consultation highlighted a number of concerns about assurance schemes and particularly about the involvement of consumers in schemes and the ways in which scheme standards are communicated to consumers.

The purpose of this guidance is to:

• provide advice for schemes on best practice; and
• help consumers by promoting best practice amongst assurance schemes.