What Is A Red Tractor Pre-Audit and What Are The Benefits?

I recently visited a farm to complete a Red Tractor pre-audit following a phone call from the concerned farmer who wasn’t confident that his paperwork and farm were going to meet Red Tractor standards.

Firstly, we looked through the paperwork that he had from previous audits, and we discussed what was missing.  I was able to provide him with the correct templates (both at the meeting and via email afterwards), and help him fill them in, it was a good chance to get the admin up to date, to get up to date livestock diet plans from his nutritionist and to contact his vet for his up-to-date livestock health and performance review.

We then went out on the farm, looking at areas that needed to be addressed to meet Red Tractor standards.  We discussed plastic disposal, water trough maintenance and ensuring both the bulk tank and the parlour structures were dust free, clean, and maintained.

Following the farm walk, we sat back down and discussed all the points that we had raised going round and created a ‘to do’ list of things that needed to be sourced or jobs that need to be done before the audit.  Though I was unable to help him with these areas, it helped him feel more in control of the work that needed to be completed.

I caught up with the farmer following his audit, which he got through with only a couple of non-conformances including a missing passport and out of date medicine.  He was incredibly grateful for my help getting everything prepared for his audit as the areas I had covered with him had passed through without any issues raised and having someone check over the farm beforehand made him feel more confident that there weren’t going to be any problems.

If you would like to discuss getting some support for your upcoming Red Tractor Audit, especially with the new standards starting 1^st November 2021, please contact Emily on 07944 68469 or e-mail emilywynder@fcgagric.com