ResponsibleAg, the voluntary and industry-led safety and stewardship initiative, announced on Sept. 17 that it reached another major milestone when the 4,000th facility audit was completed at Rutherford Farmers Cooperative in Murfreesboro, Tenn., a Tennessee Farmers Cooperative (TFC)-affiliated facility.
Launched in 2014 as a joint venture of The Fertilizer Institute (TFI) and the Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA), ResponsibleAg provides an audit and certification program to help participating locations ensure they comply with pertinent regulations from OSHA, DOT, EPA, and DHS to keep employees, customers, and communities safe.
“Reaching that milestone illustrates both the success and value of the program and shows there’s longevity in the program,” said Drew Landerman, Environmental, Health, and Safety specialist for TFC and a ResponsibleAg-credentialed auditor. Landerman said TFC encouraged its member cooperatives to participate in ResponsibleAg from the start, with the Rutherford Farmers Cooperative’s DeKalb County branch becoming the 1,000th facility nationally to earn ResponsibleAg Certification in 2018.
“ResponsibleAg’s comprehensive audit checklist is regularly updated to reflect new regulations, so we don’t have to spend time creating our own,” he said. “Instead, we can focus on educating not only the various managers, but also employees at our ag retail sites on safety to help them better understand and meet safety regulations. We’ve found doing this, plus educating them about the ResponsibleAg program, increases employee ownership and pride in their workplace, which leads to fewer injuries, illnesses, and citations.”
The ResponsibleAg audit encompasses up to 17 areas of operation, depending on the type of facility. Following an audit, the facility receives a corrective action plan detailing how to resolve any issues identified. Once corrections are made, the facility achieves ResponsibleAg certification, which is good for three years. Recertification ensures personnel stay up to date on safe practices and facilities comply with new or updated rules and regulations.
Since the first ResponsibleAg audits were conducted in 2015, almost 130,000 compliance issues have been identified at participating facilities, and nearly 96,000 issues have been resolved to date. “While that’s a good track record, our goal is to continue to improve those numbers,” said Tim McArdle, a longtime board member and retiring chairman of the ResponsibleAg Board of Directors. “Safety and compliance are at the heart of what ResponsibleAg does. The industry’s continuous commitment and strong participation show regulators that we place high importance on compliance and we are capable of self-regulating.”