The certification of any product in relation to its Organic status can be achieved in 5 simple steps.
Important changes to the NOP Organic certification for Indian companies
To access the contact details of all Indian organic product suppliers, organic brands and organic shops in India, buy Organic Directory
◊ By Luella Fernandes
In the 21st century, while battling climate change, chemical pollution and, of late, the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for more sustainable, chemical-free and natural foods has come to light, supported by ethical choices concerning other personal products like cosmetics, textiles, home care, etc.
The entrustment of assuring the authenticity of certified product claims have long been borne by certification bodies. This assurance is based on a highly methodical validation of raw materials, thorough audits of manufacturing/agricultural conditions and processes, interviews, surprise checks, product testing, etc.
It is no surprise that multiple third-party certifications are now the norm, especially when exporting products to first-world countries.
The 5 steps to organic certification are:
Step 1: Application and its review
Step 2: Signing of the contract
Step 3: Initial on-site evaluation
Step 4: Review of the Audit report leading to a decision (regarding if the farm/product/brand merits organic certification)
Step 5: Surveillance (often annually)
To further understand this process, let us look at each step individually.
STEP 1
Upon contacting a certification body regarding organic certification, an operator/manufacturer/brand owner will receive an application form, which requires details about the type of activities the entity is involved in and the products intended to be certified, ingredients to be used, information on the agricultural area, manufacturing unit, storage facilities, livestock rearing conditions, etc.
At this step, it is important to give as much detail as possible and also to begin arranging for proof of information provided, such as land documents, factory licence, FSSAI licence, list of farmers with acreage in case of grower group certification, site map, and so forth.
These documents will either be needed to be submitted to the certification body or checked during the on-site audit.
The application form will also be accompanied by a copy of the concerned standard, which must be implemented before the on-site audit.
The filled application form, once received, will be reviewed and a decision will be made if the concerned products and processes are eligible to be certified under the applied scheme.
STEP 2
If the products/projects are found eligible for certification against the requirement of the standard applied for and match the capability of the certification body, a quotation is generated which takes into account the specific activity applied for and the required working time related to auditing and certification.
A copy of the terms and conditions are annexed to the quotation sheet, which define the relational terms between the applicant and the certification body.
The agreement is formalised once the quotation and the contract are signed, dated and stamped by the applicant, binding each party by various terms including, but not limited to, confidentiality.
This step is concluded by payment of the advance amount, differing from CB (certification body) to CB, but with full knowledge that the payment of the fee does not substantiate the grant of the certificate.
STEP 3
The third step of the certification process begins with the filling of the Organic Management Plan, also known as the Organic System Plan.
This is the documentary validation step and the operator is required to fill every detail related to the activities it performs and submit the same to the assigned certification officer who will review it and share his/her comments, if any.
Once the organic management/system plan is approved by the CB and the relevant data is updated on Tracenet* by the operator, the audit is planned on the basis of availability of the operator and the auditor.
The operator will receive prior notice of the audit plan. The on-site audit is conducted according to the plan and may last for one or more days depending on the complexity of the operations.
At the end of the audit, the audit findings are highlighted for the client, who must sign and stamp the exit interview sheet to indicate acceptance of the raised non-conformities.
STEP 4
After the audit, the audit report, as well as, the documents collected during the audit are reviewed by the certification officer, who will share the final non-conformities, if any, with the client against which corrective and preventive actions may be mandated.
This Report Review Notification must be signed, stamped, and sent back to the certification officer along with the closure of the non-conformities and the respective corrective and preventive action plan.
Based on all these documents, the certification officer takes the certification decision to grant or deny the certification. If granted, the scope certificate will be shared with the client, following which, transactional certificates (wherever applicable) can be applied for, for sale of goods.
STEP 5
The validity of the certificate in the case of NPOP (National Programme for Organic Production) is for the duration of 1 year from the date of decision and the renewal of the NOP (National Organic Program) certificate is linked to the renewal of the NPOP certificate.
This is subject to passing the annual surveillance audit.
Although the maximum surveillance duration is 1 year, certain operators may be subjected to additional audits or unannounced audits based on risk assessment.
The client must confirm his/her availability for audit at least 3 months before the date of expiry of the certificate to avoid lapse of certification. The certificate validity for private standards may vary from 12-15 months based on the date of issuance and subject to annual renewals.
In the event that there are any changes in the products, ingredients, processes or any other factors which may affect the certification, it is the operator’s responsibility to bring these changes to the notice of the certification body. Following this, some additional measures might be taken.
ORGANIC CERTIFICATION FOR NON-FOOD PRODUCTS
The basic steps are majorly the same for all organic food certifications, including animal products and livestock under NPOP and NOP schemes, the exception being for cosmetics certification, which includes an additional step of in-depth documentary validation of raw materials, formulae, labels, packaging, etc, to comply with the COSMOS standard.
Although the path to obtaining organic certification may appear to be convoluted, if the client has all the documents at the ready and complies with the standard’s requirements at every step, gaining certification for your products can be a breeze.
*TraceNet is an electronic service by APEDA for facilitating process certification for export of organic products from India which comply with the NPOP or NOP standards.
The author is Quality Manager, Ecocert India Pvt. Ltd, one of the government-approved agencies for organic certification in India.
We procure organic food products directly from farmers and pack and sell under our brand name.
which certificates do we need .Please guide
If you are selling only in India, you need NPOP (PGS will also do). If you are exporting to USA, you need NOP. If you are exporting to Europe, you need EU (Euro leaf). Kindly contact any of these accredited agencies to get certified. They will guide you:
https://www.pureecoindia.in/how-to-get-your-organic-farm-organic-food-brand-or-organic-products-certified-organic-in-india-rutaksha-rawat/
We are growing seedless lemon, drumsticks, and other vegetables with organic inputs. We will be getting our NPOP Certification by the end of this year. Besides, gir cows on our farm, it is equipped with vermicompost unit, gobar gas plant, solar plant for drip irrigation pumps and 24 hour water supply from Narmada Canal.
we have organic land certification from USOCA( NPOP) can i sell direct from farm products in the market, or any other certification is required apart from it
Yes, if your farm is already certified organic as per NPOP then you can sell directly in the market /to final consumer claiming as ‘organic’ after informing the harvested yield to your certification body to update yield, stock, etc, on TRACENET as well.
If you are selling as packaged produce as a brand, then as per FSSAI requirement, you should have the FSSAI License/Registration as well.
If you, the farm owner, already have a registered brand, then you can add that brand name in the NPOP scope certificate for the farm itself in trade name of the farm produce.
For example, in the NPOP certificate’s second page, where the farm produce name would get listed, you can mention the brand name as prefix to each crop produce. E.g, if brand name is ‘Nature Fresh’ then produce trade name would be written as ‘Nature Fresh Brinjal’.
Planning to quickly launch your Organic business Interested in purchasing 3 + years our Organic certified farm 1.25 acres . Feel free to contact 9894748666.
Thanks a lot for the information
Hi, I am planingg to start an organic mustard oil company. I have got agri land ,could you please share what sort of certification I should go for in order to get certified organic product.
NPOP for domestic sale, NOP for US export.
I plan to manufacture an Organic Cosmetic product, so which license is required in India?
Organic certification is not mandatory in India for cosmetics. But if you’d like to be certified for credibility, you need ECOCERT France. Find their details here:
https://www.cosmos-standard.org/en/certification/certification-bodies/
Hi,
Which certificate required for manufacturing of Natural & Organic Cosmetic products in India | USA | UK | Australia & Middle East
You can either simply use organic ingredients or opt for this: https://www.cosmos-standard.org/en/