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Organic (EU)
Summary

Organic standards have long been used to create an agreement within organic agriculture about what an "organic" claim on a product means, and to some extent, to inform consumers. Currently there are hundreds of private organic standards worldwide; and in addition, organic standards have been codified in the technical regulations of more than 60 governments. Although certification started as a voluntary activity, the market began to demand it for sales transactions, and now it is required by the regulations of many governments for any kind of an "organic" claim on a product label.

Objective  Is the focus of the standard on economic, social, environmental, food safety or organic issues?
 Organic & Environmental
Why?  Who is asking you to use this system? Is it a market requirement or a voluntary system?
 Consumer driven: voluntary certification, safeguarded by EU legislation, USA (NOP), Japan (JAS) and third country legislation.
Scope of the standard  What kind of processes within your organisation/company should be changed according to the standard’s criteria? Most systems look at the production process, and/or look at the processing of the produce. Some systems look at organisational processes as well, e.g. if democratic structures are in place, how support departments are organized (HRM/financial), if internal control systems are in place, if ILO labour conditions are implemented, etcetera. Additionally the processes of your suppliers or service provider can be part of the standards’ scope as well. This means that you are responsible for the sustainability of their (or part of their) actions as well.
organisational processes N
(on-farm) production Y
processing Y
supplier/service provider Y
Who can apply?  Not every code or standard can be used by every actor within the supply chain. Some are just targeted to a specific group within the chain, others focus on the complete chain. You can think of the following parties: producers/producer group, processor, exporter/trader, importer, retailer.  
producers/producer groups Y
processor Y
exporter/trader Y
importer Y
retail Y
Products  Most systems focus on specific products, product groups or sectors. Please look carefully if you produce falls under the scope of the standard.
 The EU Regulation applies to non-processed crop and animal products (incl. honey, but no fishery products), processed agricultural products intended for human consumption and to animal feed.
Markets  Although most systems are used worldwide, they often have their origin or focus in a specific country or region. Some countries/regions prefer a certain code or standard.
 Worldwide
Benefits  A very legitimate question is what this specific certification means to you. Does it provide you access to markets, or even to niche markets? Does it guarantee a better price, or maybe even a premium on top of a minimum price? Does it create better access to support services?  
market access Y
access to niche market Y
premium Y
other Most western traders are dedicated traders, and want to establish sustainable trade relations.
Support services  To be able to comply with the requirements of such systems, you may need some support. Various experts in the field of certification are available and can give this (paid/free) support. Yes commercially available, as well as through various NGO's.
Click here
Adaptations/investments   Conversion period of 3 years for farms Quality management system in place.
In case of smallholder producer structures, internal quality management staff.
Costs & Time  Working with these certification systems and implementing the necessary steps is often not an easy task. You have to be aware of the many implications and adaptations you may have to make. This section gives some examples of the kind of investments you to have to think of. Costs are based on company size, scope and complexity of operation. The cost structure is also based on the minimum audit time on site. It is therefore difficult to state exact fees in advance.
Costs differs from certifier to certifier. Ask for quotations and compare prices/services
System characteristics  In this section you will find a link to the standard itself and some main points of attention.
 Currently there are hundreds of private organic standards worldwide and in addition, organic standards have been codified in the technical regulations of more than 60 governments. The main part of the EU regulation outlines the rules for labelling of organic produce (Article 5 and related the rules for processing in Annex VI), the production standards (Article 6 and related Annexes I and II) and the necessary inspection measures (Art. 8 & 9 and related the Annex III). The regulation also defines two different possibilities for import of organic food produce originating from non-EU member countries.
For EU organic regulations click here
Verification    
internal inspection Internal audit cycle advisable before external verification
external inspection Variety of certifiers.
Type of label  One of ways to show that a product complies with a specific standard is to label it. Some codes or standards do not use a label at all. Nevertheless, most choose to carry a Business to Business (B2B) or a Consumer label.
 Term organic may be used when certified by an accepted certification body.
Big variety of consumer labels in use throughout Europe. Right to use label depends on label issuer and certification body involved. Organic certified does not automatically give right to use specific labels. Term organic protected throughout Europe.
Who's behind it?  What is the origin of the standard, and who has initiated the idea? Who is the owner of the certification system?
 EU, EU member states, Japan, USA governments, private standard setters (requirements above legal minimum).
Trends  The trend section is mainly based on future perspectives of the standard. Are they going to expand to other products, other markets? Is there increasing interest from markets for this specific certification? What can you expect in the coming period?
 In June 2007 the new EU regulation for organic production and labelling has been approved The Regulation will enter into force in January 2009, giving member states time to adapt their own legislation accordingly.
Update to new EU regulation includes: -To widen the scope of products and activities covered by the Regulation to include catering businesses and products such as wool, fish preserves, cosmetics and essential oils.
- To make procedures on importing from outside the EU stricter so that every product has been certified according to a system equivalent to the EU Regulation. - To develop a control system based on the ISO 65/ EN 4501111, created specifically for organic farming according to the IFOAM accreditation criteria.
- To make it obligatory that all certification bodies are accredited according to the EN4501111 (and not only to ‘fulfil the EN45011’ as the Regulation currently states).
Contact
  website European Commission
   
all certification systems

 
 
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