Information Currency Disclaimer: This guide is based on publicly available NZGAP programme information. ThinkSafe is a health and safety documentation platform and does not provide NZGAP certification or audit services.
If you're facing an NZGAP audit, the biggest challenge usually isn't the work you do on the orchard or vineyard — it's proving it.
Many growers with safe operations still receive corrective actions when documentation is missing, inconsistent, or hard to produce during the audit.
This guide focuses specifically on the health and safety documentation component of NZGAP audits. NZGAP also covers food safety, environmental management, and traceability.
It explains how the H&S portion of NZGAP audits works in practice, where growers commonly get caught out, and how to prepare without spending weeks buried in paperwork.
What an NZGAP Audit Really Looks Like
NZGAP audits are evidence-driven.
Auditors will ask you to show:
Hazard identification and controls
Worker and contractor inductions
Incident and near-miss records
Inspection and maintenance records
Proof that issues are followed up
They are not looking for perfect systems — they are looking for clear, current evidence.
Where Many Growers Struggle
Common documentation challenges include:
Records exist — but aren't accessible
Documents are spread across notebooks, folders, phones, vehicles, or emails. When an auditor asks to see contractor inductions from the last three months, you're checking the office filing cabinet, the shed folder, and calling your supervisor to see if they have records from last week's spray contractor.
Verbal processes with no proof
Workers are inducted, but nothing is signed or recorded. Seasonal workers are told about site hazards, but there's no documentation. Contractors receive safety briefings, but no sign-off exists. Auditors treat missing documentation as a system failure, not just poor record-keeping.
Contractors aren't documented
Seasonal workers or spray contractors are used, but compliance isn't verified or recorded. You know they were inducted, but you can't prove when, by whom, or what was covered.
Incidents and near misses go unlogged
If nothing is recorded, this can be treated as a system gap. A documented process for reporting and investigating is required under NZGAP standards.
NZGAP Health and Safety Requirements
NZGAP includes health and safety requirements alongside food safety and environmental management. This guide focuses specifically on the H&S documentation component.
What "Audit-Ready" Actually Means
Being audit-ready doesn't mean creating new documents before the audit.
It means:
Records are created as work happens
Inductions are completed before work starts
Incidents are logged when they occur
Actions are tracked until closed
When this happens, audits become a review of existing records, not a scramble.
Paper Systems vs Digital Records
Paper systems are allowed — but they create risk:
Lost or damaged records
Missing dates or signatures
Inconsistent formats
Extra time finding evidence during audits
Digital systems reduce this risk by:
Automatically time-stamping records
Keeping everything in one place
Making evidence easy to retrieve
This is particularly helpful when managing:
Multiple sites or blocks
Seasonal workforces
Contractors
How Documentation Systems Differ
Paper-based approach:
When asked for contractor induction records, you need to check multiple locations - office filing cabinet, shed folders, supervisor's records. Forms may be incomplete with missing dates or signatures. Locating specific records can take significant time.
Digital system approach:
Search or filter for specific record types and date ranges. All records stored centrally with automatic timestamps and digital signatures. Records can be displayed or exported immediately.
The difference isn't the quality of the underlying safety process - it's the speed and completeness of proof.
The Offline Problem for Orchards and Vineyards
Many orchards, vineyards, and packhouses have patchy mobile connectivity.
This creates a critical issue: if your safety system requires internet access to work, you can't:
Complete inductions in the field
Report hazards when spotted
Log incidents immediately after they occur
Conduct inspections away from the office
Systems that work offline solve this. Workers complete forms in flight mode, records are stored locally, and everything syncs when connectivity returns.
During audits, this means your records are current and complete — not dependent on "when someone got back to wifi."
Evidence Capture vs Document Storage
Modern safety systems do two things:
Mobile Evidence Capture
Workers complete inductions on phone or tablet
Photos attached to incident reports
Signatures captured digitally
Automatic timestamps and GPS location
Works offline in the field
Central Documentation Management
All records stored in one system
Search by keyword, date, person, or form type
Export reports for auditors
Filter hundreds of records instantly
Hazard registers and training plans maintained
The mobile side captures proof the moment activities happen. The management side organises that proof for audit purposes.
What ThinkSafe Provides
ThinkSafe is a mobile-first platform for field-based data capture, used by growers, packhouses, and contractors across New Zealand horticulture.
Powerful Mobile App
Pre-loaded and fully customisable
Works offline, syncs in real-time
Browse app catalogue and add pre-built forms instantly
Digital signature capture and photo attachment
Automatic timestamps
Documentation Provided
Your H&S system sorted
All captured records stored centrally
Instant search and filtering
Export reports for auditors in seconds
Professional Advisory Support
HASANZ-registered H&S experts on your team
Support from pre-qualification through to incident response
How This Helps During NZGAP Audits:
When auditor asks for contractor inductions: Filter by form type and date range in the dashboard. Show all contractor inductions with signatures, dates, and hazard briefings documented.
When auditor asks for incident records: Search "incident" and display all logged accidents with photos, timestamps, and follow-up actions completed.
When auditor asks for hazard documentation: Show observations captured in the field with photos and timestamps.
Records are produced in seconds, not searched for across multiple locations.
The Cost Reality: Consultants vs Systems
Many growers hire consultants to prepare for NZGAP audits.
Based on typical NZ H&S consultant rates:
Initial setup: 8-12 hours × $150/hour = $1,200-$1,800
Annual audit prep: 4-6 hours × $150/hour = $600-$900
Corrective actions: 2-4 hours × $150/hour = $300-$600
Estimated annual consultant cost: $2,100-$3,300
ThinkSafe starts at $59 + GST per month (12-month term) with HASANZ-registered professional support included.
The system maintains records continuously, so audit preparation becomes a review process rather than a scramble to create documentation.
Focusing on What Matters
Your health, safety, and worker welfare evidence needs to be current, complete, and easy to show during audits.
This is where many growers choose to use a dedicated safety system rather than relying on folders and templates.
If you want to see how this fits into an NZGAP audit without overcomplicating compliance, this page explains it clearly:
NZGAP Health and Safety – Audit-Ready Systems for Growers
Final Thought
When records are maintained consistently, audits move more quickly — and corrective actions are often minimised.
Preparation isn't about more paperwork. It's about better systems that run in the background.
