The Ranikhet Declaration

 

"Participatory Guarantee Systems are locally focused quality assurance systems. They certify producers based on active participation of stakeholders and are built on a foundation of trust, social networks and knowledge exchange."
- Official definition, 2008, by IFOAM - Organics International
This definition is available in Chinese/中文, Deutsch, Español, Français, Japanese/日本語 and Português. 

In April 2019, the Mountain Partnership Products (MPP) initiative representatives established the first international network of Participatory Guarantee Systems (PGS) specifically designed for smallholder farmers in mountain regions and signed the Ranikhet Declaration for a Global PGS Network. 

The main issue of the MPP initiative is the effective management of a complex network of smallholder producers from all over the world, while aiming to promote the specificity of every single product. Therefore, PGS have been identified as appropriate and effective systems for their specific characteristics. 

A PGS is a quality assurance scheme for agricultural products, internationally recognized as a low-cost certification suitable for smallholder farmers and local/national markets. It is based on the active participation of farmers, consumers, and other relevant stakeholders, who come together to make decisions, visit farms, support one another and make sure that the production chain is carried out according to organic standards. Learn more about PGS here.

Read the Ranikhet Declaration for a Global PGS Network

Endorse the Ranikhet Declaration