Across Africa and many low- and middle-income countries, food systems are under growing pressure. Farmers face rising production costs, climate variability, limited access to markets, fragmented standards, and increasing expectations around food safety, sustainability, and ethics. At the same time, consumers, buyers, and governments are demanding greater transparency, traceability, and accountability in how food is produced and traded.

Yet, while numerous certification and sustainability initiatives exist globally, many remain inaccessible to small and medium-scale producers due to high costs, complexity, or lack of local relevance. This disconnect leaves many responsible farmers excluded from markets that increasingly reward verified, ethical, and sustainable practices.

To address this gap, One Health and Development Initiative (OHDI) is proud to introduce AgrowSAFE,  a practical, inclusive, and technology-enabled framework designed to support farmers, value-chain actors, and institutions in building trusted and resilient food systems.

What is AgrowSAFE?

AgrowSAFE is an integrated verification and support ecosystem built on the S.A.F.E principles:
Sustainable, Accessible, Food-safe, and Ethical. It is designed to help farmers and agribusinesses document, improve, verify, and showcase their practices, while connecting them to advisory support, markets, service providers, and trusted partners.

AgrowSAFE is a step-by-step pathway that enables producers to progressively align with good agricultural practices, food safety requirements, animal welfare and ethical standards, environmental stewardship, and inclusive labour practices, in ways that are realistic and affordable for diverse farming contexts.

Why AgrowSAFE Matters

Food systems are increasingly interconnected across human, animal, plant, and environmental health. Poor practices in one area can undermine public health, livelihoods, ecosystems, and consumer trust. AgrowSAFE was developed using a One Health lens, recognising that sustainable food production must protect people, animals, and the environment together.

AgrowSAFE responds to key challenges by:

• Lowering barriers to compliance for small and medium-scale producers
• Improving transparency and traceability across agricultural value chains
• Supporting ethical and climate-smart practices
• Linking responsible producers to markets and services
• Generating data and insights for policy, planning, and accountability

Who is AgrowSAFE For?

AgrowSAFE is built as an inclusive ecosystem for multiple actors across the food system:

• Farmers & Producers: Register farms, document practices, track improvements, and demonstrate compliance with sustainability, food safety, and ethical standards.
• Buyers & Market Actors: Identify and source from verified producers committed to responsible and transparent production.
• Service Providers: Offer expertise, inputs, and services to support farmers and businesses in meeting AgrowSAFE standards.
• Partners & Collaborators: Work with us on ethical, climate-smart, and sustainable food systems through policy, research, financing, certification, and innovation.

AgrowSAFE Services and Features

AgrowSAFE brings together multiple services into one coordinated system:

• Farm Records, Monitoring & Data Logging: Producers can document farm activities, inputs, animal health and welfare practices, environmental management, and production outputs, therefore building a reliable record over time.
• Compliance, Verification & Traceability: AgrowSAFE supports structured self-assessments, external evaluations, and verification processes aligned with S.A.F.E principles, enabling traceability from farm to market.
• Training and Advisory: Farmers gain access to guidance, tools, and advisory support to improve practices, address gaps, and strengthen long-term sustainability and productivity.
• Market Access & Linkage: Verified producers can connect with buyers, aggregators, and market actors seeking responsibly produced food products.
• Directory of Professionals & Services: AgrowSAFE hosts a growing directory of veterinarians, agronomists, food safety experts, auditors, and service providers supporting agricultural value chains.
• Community Engagement & Learning: The platform fosters peer learning, knowledge sharing, and collaboration among farmers and stakeholders.
• Governance, Data & Analytics: Aggregated data and insights support learning, accountability, policy engagement, and continuous system improvement — while respecting data protection and ethical use principles.

A Progressive and Inclusive Approach

AgrowSAFE is intentionally designed as a progressive system, not a pass-or-fail gatekeeper. Farmers can join at different stages, identify priority improvement areas, and advance step-by-step toward higher levels of compliance and market readiness. This approach ensures that sustainability, food safety, and ethics are not exclusive privileges, but accessible pathways for producers across diverse contexts.

AgrowSAFE represents OHDI’s commitment to building trusted, inclusive, and resilient food systems that work for farmers, consumers, markets, and the environment. Through partnerships with governments, certification bodies, development partners, and private sector actors, AgrowSAFE aims to scale impact while remaining grounded in local realities.

As we pilot, refine, and expand AgrowSAFE across sectors – including crops, livestock, and aquaculture – we invite farmers, service providers, buyers, and collaborators to join us in shaping the future of responsible food production.

AgrowSAFE: Supporting sustainable, accessible, food-safe, and ethical agriculture — from farm to market.

For inquiries and information, explore our Contact Page or email us at agrowsafe@onehealthdev.org