How To Get American Grassfed (AGA) Certified For A Food or Beverage Product 

Without further ado, let’s get going on how to get your food or beverage product American Grassfed (AGA) certified.

Download Standard Documents

Begin your AGA processing by downloading the certification submission and membership document from their website. The standards documents would help guide you through getting your food or beverage product AGA certified. There are different copies peculiar to the variety of your food or beverage product. Make sure to download the interpretation aid to help you better understand the standards and requirements accordingly.

Fill & Submit The AGA Membership Form

You have the option of downloading the AGA membership or filling out the necessary details online. The online option allows the applicant to fill in their personal information directly to the AGA portal. Please note that neither the downloaded nor the online version of the inspection forms can be completed without prior completion of the AGA membership. Upon submission of the membership form, you can then expect your inspection forms to be attended to accordingly. 

The Facility Inspection Phase

The AGA on-site inspection is carried out by certified food inspectors registered into the program. After the approval of your inspection forms or application, a food inspector is assigned to your food or beverage product. Only AGA-approved inspectors are licensed to carry out the specification under the regulatory compliance of the AGA program. After selecting an individual inspector or agency, the person is expected to file a proper application of your inspection details to AGA.

Submit Inspection Report To AGA

The inspection takes days, sometimes weeks of screening through your production facility using APA’s required standards. After completing the inspection process, the AGA-approved inspector is expected to crosscheck the information provided during registration. Without proper documentation of this process, APA assumes your company makes false claims of the details provided. The inspector should then submit the inspection report to AGA via email, attaching your company’s email.

Certification Committee Review

The next step after the submission of the inspection report is a committee review of your certification proposal. The certification committee reviews the documents and reports compiled by the inspector. At this point, the documents and reports are scrutinized using AGA standards. When your paperwork meets the AGA certification program’s requirements and standards, your product would be certified. The committee review validates your approval or dismissal.

AGA Licensing Agreement 

After the approval from the committee’s review, you’d get a licensing agreement to finalize the certification process. Alongside the licensing agreement comes the invoice for the payment of the AGA certification. It’s expected that each applicant forwards a copy of its label to AGA for proper documentation. Once the licensing agreement has been signed, payment confirmed, and your label sent to AGA, your certification would be approved and processed.

Applicants are now advised to only use the AGA Grassfed label after their food or beverage product has been approved. Brands that use the AGA Grassfed logo without a proper certification process would be penalized.