Organic certification for flowers

Courtesy: Organic certification for flowers

In Canada, certification was implemented at the federal level on June 30, 2009. Mandatory certification is required for agricultural products represented as organic in import, export and inter-provincial trade, or that bear the federal organic logo. In Quebec, provincial legislation provides government oversight of organic certification within the province, through the Quebec Accreditation Board (Conseil D’Accréditation Du Québec). Only products that use at least 95% organic materials in production are allowed to bear the Canadian organic logo. Products between 70-95% may declare they have xx% of organic ingredients, however they do not meet requirements to bear the certified logo. Transitioning from a conventional agricultural operation to an organic operation takes the producers up to three years to receive organic certification, during which time products cannot be marketed as organic products, and producers will not receive pricing premiums on their goods during this time. Cows, sheep, and goats are the only livestock that are allowed to be transitioned to organic, under Canada’s regulations. They must undergo organic management for one year before their products can be considered certified organic.

Argentina

In Argentina, the Organic certification was implemented in December 2012, through a Ministry of Agriculture resolution. Organic products are labeled with the Orgánico Argentina seal, which is administered by SENASA and issued by four private companies. Organic production is regulated by the 25.127 Act, passed in 1999.

During 2019, 70,446 hectares (174,080 acres) of land were used for organic production certified with the Argentine seal.

Europe

Public organic certification

EU countries acquired comprehensive organic legislation with the implementation of the EU-Eco-regulation 1992. Supervision of certification bodies is handled on the national level. In March 2002 the European Commission issued an EU-wide label for organic food. It has been mandatory throughout the EU since July 2010. and has become compulsory after a two-year transition period.

In 2009 a new logo was chosen through a design competition and online public vote. The new logo is a green rectangle that shows twelve stars (from the European flag) placed such that they form the shape of a leaf in the wind. Unlike earlier labels no words are presented on the label lifting the requirement for translations referring to organic food certification.

The new EU organic label has been implemented since July 2010 and has replaced the old European Organic label. However, producers that have had already printed and ready to use packaging with the old label were allowed to use them in the upcoming two years.

The development of the EU organic label was develop based on Denmark’s organic food policy and the rules behind the Danish organic food label which at the moment holds the highest rate of recognition among its users in the world respectively 98% and 90% trust the label. The current EU organic label is meant to signal to the consumer that at least 95% of the ingredients used in the processed organic food is from organic origin and 5% considered an acceptable error margin.

Besides the public organic certification regulation EU-Eco-regulation in 1992, there are various private organic certifications available:

• Demeter International is the largest certification organization for biodynamic agriculture, and is one of three predominant organic certifiers. Demeter Biodynamic Certification is used in over 50 countries to verify that biodynamic products meet international standards in production and processing. The Demeter certification program was established in 1928, and as such was the first ecological label for organically produced foods.
• Bio Suisse established in 1981 is the Swiss organic farmer umbrella organization. International activities are mainly focused on imports towards Switzerland and do not support export activities.
• Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) is a private standard for organic clothing for the entire post-harvest processing (including spinning, knitting, weaving, dyeing and manufacturing) of apparel and home textiles made with organic fibres (such as organic cotton, organic wool etc.). It includes both environmental and social criteria. Established in 2002, the standard is used in over 68 countries and is endorsed by USDA and IFOAM – Organics International. The material must be at least 95% organic, as certified by “recognized international or national standards”. If the material is 70% organic, it can be labeled as “made with organic”.