Beef producers drive audit process

June 26, 2007

"We knew getting verified was important for how we wanted to market our beef. Now that we've been through the process, we're comfortable with how it works and how it was handled. It doesn't involve any personal criticism. It's just about helping us get to where we want to be."

– Sinclair, Man., beef producer Bryce Penner.

More producers across Canada are choosing VBP registration to strengthen their operations and marketing advantages.

One thing is clear for father and son Don and Bryce Penner when it comes to the future of the family's beef operation near Sinclair, Man. - whatever twists and turns emerge on the road ahead, they want to be in the driver's seat.

That's one reason why the Penners were early partners in Natural Prairie Beef Inc., a producer-run initiative formed in 2004 to raise and market cattle for Natural Valley Farms. Taking charge of their future in a challenging time for the beef industry, the approximately 100 cattle producers involved in the project now raise around 10,000 head of cattle annually for slaughter at a new plant in Saskatchewan that benefited from $2.2 million in producer funding to complete financing.

It's also a reason why the Penner operation was the first in Manitoba to participate in the auditing process for the Verified Beef Production (VBP) program.

VBP is a producer-led program designed to help implement and verify the good production practices on-farm that minimize food safety risks. Producers can attend training workshops to learn about potential beef safety risks on-farm and which practices they can implement will minimize those risks.

Producers wishing to prove they are following standard operating procedures (SOPs) of the VBP program can request verification of their on-farm management practices. This "audit" process is way to meet increasing expectations from food companies and consumers. It's a particularly attractive option for producers who wish to authenticate their food safety practices as part of current marketing efforts.

"Verification is part of the way we were marketing our beef through Natural Prairie Beef," says Bryce Penner. "We didn't know a lot about the process, but we knew getting verified was important for how we wanted to market our beef. Now that we've been through the process, we're comfortable with how it works and how it was handled. It doesn't involve any personal criticism. It's just about helping us get to where we need to be. We feel we're well set up now to continue being verified."

The road to enrollment

Before a beef operation can become registered under the VBP program, at least one person on the operation must attend a VBP training program run by a VBP Provincial Delivery Agent. The training course provides producers with a recap of how to identify potential beef safety hazards, how to implement practices on-farm to minimize those hazards, and what procedures to follow if issues arise. Producers are provided with a VBP manual containing all this information that they can take home to use as a reference.

Once producers implement the VBP program's SOPs for a set period – three months for a feedlot operation and six months for a cow/calf operation – they can then choose to request a registration audit. This is done by once again contacting the local VBP Provincial Delivery Agent. Arrangements are then made for a trained, independent auditor hired by the Provincial Delivery Agent to come to the beef operation to verify that the program's SOPs are being implemented.

Once the auditor provides a recommendation, the beef operation is registered and producers receive a VBP program certificate.

No surprises

For Don and Bryce Penner, the audit process began with a phone call from the auditor hired to handle their case, Lyle McNichol, a consultant with a background in working with producers.

"I really liked what Lyle had to say," says Bryce Penner. "He said the audit is not a criticism of our farm at all. It's just a process to see how we are set up, and to help us make any adjustments needed to get verified. He said it doesn't involve any personal criticism at all. That was a good thing to hear."

During this initial phone call, McNichol also walked the Penners through the process of how the audit would take place, what he would be looking for and what paperwork would be needed.

"It was nice to know ahead of time what would happen and what we would need," says Penner. "That way there were no surprises and we had good time to prepare."

Getting records, processes up to par

Penner says the most time-consuming aspect was getting the operation's record keeping in order. The Penners had followed the SOPs and had a strong recollection of how different animals were handled, but in some cases didn't have everything written down in the format that would be required for verification. They also needed to write down specific plans for how they would handle situations such as unintended off-label use or a suspected broken needle in an animal.

The audit was then conducted on a date decided upon by both parties. Don and Bryce toured the farm with McNichol, showing him key components such as facilities, records and where medication was stored.

"He looked at our records for what medications we'd given the animals, that type of thing, and then we did a walk around the farm to show him the other parts," says Bryce.

McNichol completed a report as he carried out the audit process and went over it with the Penners once the audit was complete.

"Lyle gave us a few corrective actions that needed to be done," says Bryce. "Then we figured out a date between us when we could have those in place."

Smooth process, simple maintenance

Once the corrective actions were carried out and confirmed, a new report showing the Penners had met VBP registration standards was then sent to the provincial coordinator handling the official verification process on behalf of Manitoba Cattle Producers Association. The Penners received a copy of the certificate, along with some papers to sign and send back. After that, the process was complete and the Penner operation was officially verified under the VBP program.

"Overall, we felt the process went pretty smoothly and the work and time involved was not too bad," says Bryce Penner. "There may be a bit of catch up on record keeping or a few physical things needed the first time, but once you have everything set up the right way the maintenance part is a lot easier."

Strengthens marketing options

To maintain their verified status, the Penners will now perform a quick self assessment every year before an annual records review or self declaration.

"Now that we're set up, we're not worried about record reviews because we know what to expect and it's just a matter of keeping up what we already have in place," says Bryce. "If anything, we welcome the process because it helps us keep up the verified status that we want to have as an advantage for how we market our beef."

Lean more

More information on the VBP program, VBP workshops and the enrollment process is available on the VBP Web site at ((add new Web site address)). To sign up for workshops or request VBP workshops, click here to contact your local VBP program Provincial Delivery Agent.