2007 Transition

NPMA expects that the year 2007 will be a transitional year for implementation of the standards. While NPMA has made every effort to inform all members about the implementation, gearing up by the pest management industry will take some time. Also, we are pleased that third party auditors such as AIB, ASI, NSF Cook and Thurber, and Silliker have worked with us and announced intent to implement the standards, in whole or in part, as part of their expectations for food plants. These auditing groups will also take some time to decide on which parts of the standards to audit and to train their field auditors. Finally, food plant customers will need time to evaluate how to implement the standards in their processes. Clearly, all of this cannot happen instantly. NPMA suggests working with your customers and their auditors to educate them on the standards, and to understand the implementation expectations and their deadlines. Customers may depend on the pest management firm to provide guidance. We expect that this process will work smoothly, based upon feedback which we have received to date. As to the auditing groups and food plants, NPMA has no authority to mandate implementation nor does NPMA control any action by these parties, but we are pleased with how well the standards have been embraced. This is truly a case of our industry taking the lead and we commend all in our industry for the support in making this goal a reality.