A More Focused, Collaborative Approach to Worker Engagement

Equitable Food Initiative (EFI), a workforce development and certification organization, has announced a significant overhaul of its certification program, effective March 5, 2025.

Operating out of Washington, EFI has focused on helping produce growers, farmworkers, and retailers improve working conditions and meet crucial safety and social responsibility standards.

By consolidating its requirements and offering more flexibility to certified operations, EFI seeks to reduce redundancies, cut costs, and emphasize the collaboration between worker-manager teams.

This move addresses industry demands for more tailored approaches to verifying labor practices while continuing to promote a positive workplace culture.

In response to ongoing market feedback, EFI’s certification now centers on social and culture of food safety standards, with an optional integrated pest management (IPM) component.

Farming operations can choose which standards they audit against, freeing many producers from duplicative reviews.

The decision to streamline the process arises from more than a decade of experience certifying produce farming operations and the input of growers, suppliers, retailers, auditors, and other partners.

EFI had previously offered GFSI-recognized technical food safety audits but found many producers already held relevant certificates from other bodies.

By opting out of these overlapping checks, EFI aims to provide a leaner path to social accountability.

“We recognize the value of EFI’s rigorous certification process, which we believe is largely attributed to the active engagement of workers in all facets of the operation. Streamlining and consolidating the process to what EFI does best is incredibly exciting, especially given the industry’s strong and growing commitment to social responsibility and sustainability.”

Preston Witt, Human Rights Director at Costco Wholesale

This perspective reflects widespread support among major retailers, including Kroger, Sam’s Club, Target, Walmart, and Whole Foods Market, all of which acknowledge the advantages of EFI’s worker-centered methodology.

Independent third-party evaluations have repeatedly demonstrated that the program fosters deeper communication, efficient management structures, and improved skill development across the workforce.

Over the years, EFI has acted on these successes by concentrating on its strengths.

“Over the past several years, EFI has made a series of strategic decisions to better align our work to our mission. The market has responded positively to our certification’s ability to engage workers and create a culture of continuous improvement, and by focusing on those strengths, we can better serve growers and position the program to grow.”

Peter O’Driscoll, executive director of EFI

Building on that philosophy, EFI no longer sees value in reproducing audits that many farms already undergo, instead devoting its resources to nurturing the workforce engagement model it helped pioneer.

“It has always been a priority for EFI to minimize redundancy in the auditing process while ensuring that workers understand food safety and uphold responsible labor practices. We have learned a lot in recent years that has shaped our internal processes for both training and auditing, and we are eager to put those learnings to work for new growers.”

Karla Cook, Certification Manager for EFI

By refining its own processes, EFI expects that new and existing partners will integrate the program more seamlessly into their operations.

In recent years, EFI has expanded its offerings with additional certifications specific to farm labor contractors and to the Regenerative Organic Certified gold-level worker fairness standards, both placing a greater focus on social responsibility and worker engagement.

These developments underline EFI’s belief that consistent employee involvement not only improves farming operations but also bolsters compliance with critical industry requirements.

The program has garnered interest from operations that want to confirm their labor and safety credentials without duplicating effort or sacrificing worker welfare.

“Ensuring a culture of continuous improvement and worker engagement is EFI’s competitive advantage, and we believe our approach is unique in the industry,” O’Driscoll continued.

“I’m excited to see what new opportunities open for EFI as we sharpen our focus on the areas our clients tell us we do best.”

By pivoting to a more targeted certification strategy, EFI aims to expand its reach and solidify its role in helping growers maintain high standards.

This, in turn, supports retailers’ priorities for reliable, ethically produced goods and helps build trust among consumers who demand accountability at every stage of the supply chain.