Organic spices standards and certification information

Information for organic spices standards and certification in our free herbs and spices resources collection.

Organic spices standards and certification

The most significant factors distinguishing organic farming from other methods of sustainable agriculture are the existence of production and processing standards, and certification procedures.

Standards are developed by private associations, companies, certification bodies or by the State itself. Over one hundred regional, national and international standards have been developed worldwide so far. Several countries are formulating or have adopted rules and regulations on organic farming, processing and certification requirements.

Most regulations require products that are labelled organic to be certified by an independent body, thereby providing a guarantee that the products have been made according to organic production standards. It is to protect consumers, producers and traders against the use of misleading or incorrect labels. It is also a trading instrument enabling producers to access markets for organic products and obtain premium prices. Moreover, it creates transparencies, as information on certified producing agencies and their products is normally available to the public directly from the package.

Before certification, a detailed inspection by a designated agency is carried out to verify that production and handling are done in accordance with the standards against which certification is done. The certification procedures make it possible to track and control the flow of products from primary and farm level to each stage of manufacturing and ultimately to the finished product for the consumer. This is possible as certification is based on a series of systematic procedures. The farmer, the processor, the trader or whoever is handling the product signs a contract with the certification body. Farmers are required to provide basic information on the farm, such as location and size of fields, crops grown, crop rotation practised, farming method followed, pest and disease control measures adopted on farm processing carried out, etc., to the certification body. If there is industrial processing to be carried out, details of the processing unit, technology used in processing, sources of organic raw materials, products processed, etc., need to be presented to the certification body. The certification body has to be convinced not only orally but also through records and registers maintained by the producer or operator. Certification is not a one-time procedure. It is carried out continuously on the basis of ongoing monitoring and inspection of farms and processing units.

Though India has a set of organic farmers and a few processing units, local certification bodies accredited to international organizations are only in the formative stage. Hence in India organic products require certification bodies established in other countries, especially in Europe. Of the over 100 certification bodies existing globally, three agencies have opened offices in India. Many Indian organic farmers or their associations avail assistance of these offices for inspection and certification. However, certain individual firms depend on the agencies in Europe and get the inspectors directly from there. Normally inspection and certification costs vary depending on the nature of inspection to be carried out, but it is generally between 0.3 to 1% for most products of high commercial value.

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