According to FAO, Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) are "practices that address environmental, economic and social sustainability for on-farm processes, and result in safe and quality food and non-food agricultural products".
It involves practices such as Zero tillage, Integrated Watershed Management, Precision farming, Integrated Production and Pest Management (IPPM) etc.
The GAP approach would enable efficient utilisation of agricultural inputs, boost productivity and thus promote environmental sustainability in the following manner:
- Soil: Crop rotation, conservation tillage, Mulching, rational application of fertilizers etc.
- Water: Techniques to monitor water requirements, rainwater harvesting, aquifer management, micro-irrigation etc.
- Animal health: Availability of pasture, promoting animal health through vaccination and treatment of ailments.
- Crop Production: Choosing crops according to agro-ecological conditions, market acceptability and nutritional value; Crop rotation, Inter
- cropping etc.
- Reducing Post-harvest losses: By storing food products under hygienic conditions.
- Energy and waste management: Using alternative energy sources such as solar and wind; recycling of wastes etc.
Hence, there is a need to develop a system of auditing and certification of GAP in India so that it contributes to meeting environment and social development objectives.