Organic certification – some pointers for consumers

There is a general feeling in organic circles that for organic sales to expand, consumers need to be made better aware of what organic production is all about, and what they can expect from the organic food they buy.

Seeing the word organic on a product is no guarantee at all that the product is organic. To describe and sell produce as organic without organic certification is illegal across the EU.

Under EU law food described and sold as organic must have been certified by an approved Control Body, also known as a Certification Body. Certification guarantees that food has been produced to recognised organic standards, and at least to the baseline EU organic standard.

EU Organic Regulations also require that produce labels show which control body certified the produce. Typical wording is ‘Organic Certification UK5’.  UK5 is the identification number for the Soil Association. All approved control bodies in the EU have an identification number.

You may also see a Control Body’s logo on produce, and this is optional. In the next few years, it will become compulsory to display the EU Organic logo on labels for easy identification.

On markets stalls or, for example, a butcher’s shop, the seller should be able to produce a copy of the producer’s organic certificate for the produce they are selling. Food sold in supermarkets is exempt from this as produce is pre-packed and should carry appropriate organic markings on the labels.

The EU Regulation applies in all EU countries, and requires all organic food produced in the EU to be certified to at least the EU organic standard.

The Regulations also require that all organic produce coming into the EU from countries not in the EU, is also produced to at least the EU organic standard.

Many EU approved control bodies certify non-EU organic produce, working in conjunction with control bodies in the country of origin to verify that their organic standards meet EU standards. Many country’s organic standards are now equivalent to those in the EU.

Certainly not. Organic certification is a rigorous quality assurance process which monitors production methods from farm to plate, including processors and packers.

Certification is not free, and costs farmers, processors and packers many hundreds of pounds a year in order to maintain their organic certification. Certification is in reality a licence to sell produce as organic.

Organic farms, packers and processors are inspected by control bodies at least once a year, and a report from the inspection will determine if the organic licence can be issued.

At the inspection, full records of all production records must be presented, and the inspector will tour the farm or processing plant. Any issues identified must be corrected before the organic certificate will be granted.

All other normal food safety regulations apply to organic produce as well, and combined with organic inspection, auditing, comprehensive organic standards and EU organic Regulations, probably make organic certification the most rigorous food quality assurance system in the World.