France has a national logo for organic products - the AB-Logo (AB = Agriculture biologique) - which is owned by the French state. Organic products can be labeled with this logo when they contain more than 95 percent organic components, were produced or processed within the EU, and were certified by one of the inspection bodies accredited according to EN 45011.

The AB label only certifies the grapes; it guarantees that they have been grown without pesticides or chemical fertilizers, with some exceptions subject to strictly controlled limits such as the use of copper sulphate to prevent mildew, limited to 6kg per hectare per year over five years.

The French Ministry of Agriculture accredited six inspection bodies are accredited according to EN 45011. These are: Ecocert SARL, Qualitè France, Ulase, Agrocert, Certipaq, and Aclave. The later five organizations have authorization to certify organic plant and animal products. The Ministry of Agriculture as well as the Ministry of Economic Affairs function as competent authorities according to Council Regulation (EEC) No. 2092/91. (Return to Top)

ARGENCERT has been devoted to certification of organic products since 1991, guaranteeing the organic integrity of the products from origin to destination. ARGENCERT is an ISO Guide 65 (EN 45011) inspection and certification body which assures independence, competence and impartiality in its decisions. (Return to Top)

Australian Certified Organic (ACO) is Australia’s largest certifier for organic and biodynamic produce and has over 1500 operators within its certification system. ACO is a fully-owned subsidiary of Biological Farmers of Australia (BFA).

ACO provides certification services to operators from all sectors of the organic industry. Certification ensures compliance with national production standards and allows trace back of all products to their origin.

The Australian Certified Organic logo (affectionately known as the 'bud' is Australia's organic industry's leading logo. It carries with it the ability to market organic produce on both domestic and international markets with confidence and market advantage.

The logo is well recognized both in Australia, and now in increasingly key areas such as Asia, Europe and the US. Having the largest market share means that organic certification is now becoming synonymous with BFA certification and the BFA logo. (Return to Top)

The AQIS (Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service) Organic and Bio-dynamic program is responsible for the management of organic and bio-dynamic produce via a co-regulatory arrangement with AQIS approved certifying organizations.

Organic and bio-dynamic produce is prescribed under the Export Control (Organic Produce Certification) Orders. These Orders require AQIS to conduct audits of approved certification organizations to ensure on-going compliance against legislation, the National Standard and importing country requirements. Where an organization satisfies these requirements, it is given the authority by AQIS to issue organic produce certificates for export purposes.

The AQIS Organic and Bio-dynamic program regularly consults with key stakeholders via a consultative committee process, the Organic Industry Export Consultative Committee (OIECC).

NATIONAL CERTIFIED REGULATORY MARK (VOLUNTARY)
Following the agreement of certifying organizations, AQIS has recently developed an "Australian Government Certified" regulatory mark. The mark does not replace the logos of certifying organizations but will help provide greater assurance for consumers wishing to purchase certified organic and biodynamic produce. While the mark is voluntary, its use is governed by formal conditions enforced by AQIS. (Return to Top)

The Syndicat International des Vignerons en Culture Bio-Dynamique (SIVCBD) requires that members be certified winemakers AB for their entire area and also cultivate their entire property in biodynamics. The SIVCBD provides a specification to ECOCERT an independent body that carries out an annual check on each field. Depending on the inspection report, SIVCBD issuing the label BIODYVIN.

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The Bio-Dynamic Research Institute was founded in 1957, and is involved in research of the Bio-Dynamic Agricultural Method.

In 1967 it was vested with the rights and supervision of the DEMETER Trademark in Australia. Part of this role is the certification of DEMETER quality products. This activity is recognized by the Australian Government through the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS) which audits Organic and Bio-Dynamic Standards to meet international requirements.

Once the required standard has been established, operators may apply to the Bio-Dynamic Research Institute (BDRI) to become certified users of the DEMETER Trademark. This is an international trademark which has been used in Australia since 1953 to symbolize quality produce achieved by using the Bio-Dynamic Method. (Return to Top)

BioGro is a not-for-profit organic producer and consumer organization, actively working to grow organics in New Zealand.

Developed over 25 years, especially for New Zealand organic producers, the BioGro NZ Organic Standards are practical and achievable. BioGro is one of just 30 international organic certification agencies accredited by the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM). IFOAM represents the best in international organic standards.

BioGro provides professional auditing and certification services and holds ISO 17020/EN 45004 accreditation.

BioGro is an approved Third Party Agency with the New Zealand Food Safety Authority (NZFSA) for exports of BioGro certified products to Europe and USA through the NZFSA Official Organic Assurance Programme. (Return to Top)

Bureau Veritas offers a wide range of certification services that will help you meet the growing requirements and face the challenges of higher standards in Quality, Health & Safety, Environment and Social Responsibility.We have experts dedicated to every sector. Specialization allows our inspectors and auditors to better understand and assess your processes and deliver a high quality service. (Return to Top)

California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF) promotes and supports organic food and agriculture through a premier organic certification program, trade support, producer and consumer education and political advocacy. From apples to zucchini, from almonds to wine, CCOF is involved in every facet of organics, with over 1,300 different organic crops and products, including livestock, processed products and services.

CCOF provides certification services to all stages of the organic food chain from farms to processors, restaurants and retailers. CCOF certifies to the USDA National Organic Program standards and CCOF international standards.

CCOF was founded in 1973 as a mutual assistance and certification organization for organic farmers and was one the first organizations to perform organic certification in North America. Since then, the CCOF seal has been your assurance of certification with integrity. Today, CCOF maintains one of the most consumer recognized and trusted seals in the organic marketplace. CCOF remains one of the oldest and largest organic certification and trade associations in North America, with more than 2,000 certified members throughout the farm and processing community and more than 350 supporting members.

CCOF Certification Services is accredited by USDA National Organic Program. To ensure international trade access for our clients, they maintain International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM), ISO Guide 65 accreditation and are CAQ registered. (Return to Top)

In a move aimed at boosting community and business confidence in environmental professionals, the Environment Institute of Australia and New Zealand (EIANZ) has launched Australasia's first certification scheme for environmental practitioners.

The CENVP program will ensure that talented, skilled and ethical environmental professionals are given due recognition in line with their professional counterparts from engineering, accounting, planning and architecture. Certification will provide a higher level of assurance to the community, employers, clients and professional associates.

By certifying practitioners that meet high standards of professional and ethical conduct, the scheme is set to drive environmental practice to new levels. (Return to Top)

Demeter is a network of individual certification organizations. In 1997 Demeter-International was founded for closer co-operation in the legal, economic and spiritual spheres.

Presently Demeter International has eighteen (18) member organizations from Europe, United States of America, Demeter Trade Association. Africa and New Zealand. Demeter-International represents more than 3.500 Demeter producers in approximately forty(40) countries.

Demeter is the brand for products from Biodynamic Agriculture. It is a brand that is strictly controlled and there is a comprehensive verification process insures strict compliance with the International Demeter Production and Processing Standards, as well as applicable organic regulations in the various countries -- from agricultural production to processing and final product packaging.

Read the Demeter Wine Standards that producers must implement by December 31, 2008. (Return to Top)

ECOCERT is one of the world leaders in the certification of organic farming products. ECOCERT is one of the world leaders in the certification of organic farming products.

ECOCERT certification is in accordance with Regulation CEE 2092/91, ISO 65 (EN 45011) which requires independence, competence and impartiality. Accredited by USDA for the NOP (National Organic Programme) and MAFF for JAS in Japan, as well as being approved by many countries on the basis of national regulations, ECOCERT ensures access to organic farming markets.

ECOCERT's basic task consists in guaranteeing the rigourous respect of the applied standards on products, systems or services . The issuance of the certificate acts as a security for the consumer or the user. In Organic Farming for instance, this implies the ability, by means of a qualified staff, a local or regional based network and specific tools, to assist a great number of actors of the organic field, aiming at guaranteeing conformity and traceability to the European , American or Japanese standards, according to the market targeted. (Return to Top)

The mission of IFOAM - International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements is leading, uniting and assisting the organic movement in its full diversity." Its " goal is the worldwide adoption of ecologically, socially and economically sound systems that are based on the principles of Organic Agriculture."

Leading the organic movements worldwide, IFOAM implements the will of its broad based constituency - from farmers' organizations to multinational certification agencies, ensuring the credibility and longevity of organic agriculture as a means to ecological, economic and social sustainability.

The IFOAM Organic Guarantee System enables organic certifiers to become "IFOAM Accredited" and for certified operators to label their products with the IFOAM Seal next to the logo of their IFOAM accredited certifier.

More than 30 certifiers worldwide participate in IFOAM accreditation. (Return to Top)

The International Organic Accreditation Service (IOAS) is an international accreditor working in only one technical field, that of organic agriculture. Accreditation by the IOAS is available to any certification body, in any country, active in the field of organic agriculture.

Accreditation by the IOAS provides confidence to regulatory bodies, to the trade and ultimately the consumer that organic operations certified by the body comply with national or international requirements. IOAS currently offers the following assessments against: IFOAM Norms, ISO/IEC Guide 65, European Recognition Programme, Canadian Organic Regime.

The IOAS itself is recognized as conforming to international guidelines on the implementation of accreditation services (ISO/IEC Guide 17011) by the National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST), part of the US Department of Commerce. Please view our NIST certificate. We have also been audited by the Canadian Organic Office and have received confirmation from them that they are satisfied with the level of our compliance with the Canada Organic Regime. (Return to Top)

The International Organization for Biological Control (IOBC) was established in 1955 as a global organization affiliated to the International Council of Scientific Unions (ICSU). IOBC promotes environmentally safe methods of pest and disease control. It is a voluntary organization of biological-control workers. Its mission in detail. These aims require a regionalized organization of IOBC Global to fulfill the various tasks. (Return to Top)

As of April 1, 2001, every agricultural product and agricultural product processed foods labeled "organic" for sale in Japan must be in compliance with JAS (Japan Agricultural Standards) and have an Organic JAS Seal affixed.

USDA's NOP certification assesses the processes that occur along the organic chain, and similarly, JAS requires evaluation of the internal structure and managerial competence that supports such processes. JAS further focuses on verifying that systems are in place for deciding and ensuring the products meet the relevant standards (grading.)

The Lodi Rules for Sustainable Winegrowing are California's first sustainable winegrowing standards that have been peer reviewed by scientists, academics and environmentalists and being implemented on a region-wide basis.

The Lodi Rules are based on the Lodi Winegrower's Workbook and are designed to lead to measurable improvements in environmental health of the surrounding ecosystem, society-at-large, and wine quality. Participating growers can get their vineyards certified as producing sustainably-grown winegrapes. Unlike 'do no harm' programs that consist mainly of practices that should not be used, The Lodi Rules program requires growers to use a wide range of sustainable practices that result in continual improvement of all aspects of their farming operations.

The Lodi Rules Program is third party certified which means the standards have been reviewed and endorsed by an organization not connected to the Lodi Woodbridge Winegrape Commission. Vineyards in The Lodi Rules program will be certified by Protected Harvest, an environmental non-profit organization that endorses farmers' use of stringent environmental farming standards. Protected Harvest has received the highest rating by Consumers Union as an eco-label with meaningful, verifiable, and transparent standards.

The Lodi Rules Program has two components;

• Sustainable winegrowing standards
• Pesticide Environmental Assessment System that measures the environmental impact of all the pesticides, whether organic or synthetic, used in a vineyard during the year (PEAS).

To qualify for certification a vineyard has to achieve a minimum number of sustainable farming practices points based on The Lodi Rules, and not exceed a maximum number of pesticide impact points calculated using PEAS. Certification is awarded to an individual vineyard on an annual basis. Protected Harvest ensures compliance and chain of custody with The Lodi Rules using an auditing process.

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Low Input Viticulture & Enology (LIVE) is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization that provides education and certification for vineyards and wineries.

LIVE uses international standards of sustainable viticultural and enological practices in both wine-grape and wine production. These practices are based on an independent 3rd-party-verified checklist system consisting of required and prohibited elements, as well as numerous ecological options.

Program Objectives

• To see the vineyard as a whole system.
• To create and maintain viticulture that is economically viable over time.
• To maintain the highest level of quality in our fruit production.
• Integrated production should not require any compromise of our quality standards
• To implement cultural practices and to solve problems in such a way that we minimize the use of off farm inputs, such as agricultural chemicals and fertilizers, with the goal of protecting the farmer, the environment, and society at large.
• To encourage farming practices which promote and maintain high biological diversity in the whole vineyard.
• To encourage responsible stewardship of soil health, fertility, and stability.

LIVE is certified by the International Organization for Biological Control (IOBC), the official certifying agency in Europe for sustainable agriculture. Products that receive the certification are recognized in the European market place. There has been much interest in the United States over the past several years for products that are of high quality and are produced under our label. (Return to Top)

Formed in 1986, The National Association for Sustainable Agriculture, Australia - NASAA provides certification and inspection services. Certification by NASAA provides a guarantee to the consumer that the product is a verifiable "organic" product.

NASAA is nationally audited and accredited under the Australian Quarantine Inspection Service (AQIS) Organic and Bio-dynamic Program.

In 1994, NASAA was accredited by the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM). NASAA – through its subsidiary company, NASAA Certified Organic (NCO) – has been accredited by the USDA to carry out certification services under NOP. (Return to Top)

Nature et Progrès is one of the oldest PGS in the world, functioning without discontinuity since 1972.

This French association has from the beginning involved various stakeholders and pioneers of the organic movement, including farmers, consumers, agronomists, technicians and even medical doctors.

Today, Nature et Progrès still operates as a PGS, with its own private organic standard, its own certification procedures (involving peer review and consumers in the inspection process) but is not allowed to call its products "organic" ("biologique" in French) due to the third party certification requirements of the EU regulation.

The Nature et Progrès label is still recognized positively by many organic consumers, but organic shops are starting to refuse the N&P products, and younger generations are less aware of the history and values of N&P, leading many of the N&P producers to be also third party certified so as to be able to access markets.

You can learn more about N&P at http://www.natureetprogres.org/. (Retrieved July 11, 2009 from the IFOAM website http://www.ifoam.org/about_ifoam/standards/pgs_projects/pgs_projects/15408.php) (Return to Top)

Organic Certifiers is committed to working with organic producers dedicated to providing consumers with certified organic products. Our job is to ensure organic integrity of production throughout the entire chain of custody.

ORGANIC CERTIFIERS takes pride in providing reliable, efficient and cost effective certification services. We serve clients of all sizes -- from the small local grower to internationally recognized business entities.

ORGANIC CERTIFIERS is USDA, IFOAM, ISO65 (EU Equivalent) and CARTV(Canadian Organic Regimen) Accredited, and has been certifying the organic community since 1996. Our company was one of the first accredited by the USDA in early 2002. (Return to Top)

Oregon Tilth Certified Organic (OTCO) is a nonprofit organization supporting and promoting biologically sound and socially equitable agriculture through education, research, advocacy, and certification. Oregon Tilth advocates sustainable approaches to agricultural production systems and processing, handling and marketing.

Oregon Tilth’s purpose is to educate gardeners, farmers, legislators, and the general public about the need to develop and use sustainable growing practices that promote soil health, conserve natural resources, and prevent environmental degradation while producing a clean and healthful food supply for humanity.

The history of Oregon Tilth reaches as far back as the early 1970's, as the descendant of Regional Tilth, formed in 1974 at an Ellensburg, Washington gathering of farmers and concerned consumers.

Regional Tilth provided a community and framework for a prolonged conversation about the persistent issues relative to sustainable agriculture and what kind of footprint we leave for those who follow us. With chapters in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Northern California, and Idaho, regional Tilth was a conduit for some of the early discussions that have influenced local, regional and national sustainable and organic communities, policies, and practices for over 30 years. (Return to Top)

Protected Harvest evolved out of an unprecedented collaboration of the World Wildlife Fund, the Wisconsin Potato and Vegetable Growers Association, and the University of Wisconsin. These organizations were brought together by the challenge of developing a revolutionary large-scale agricultural practice that reduced the impact on the environment.

In 2001, Protected Harvest was established as an independent certification organization, with the principal mission of advancing and certifying the use of sustainable agriculture practices through the development of stringent, transparent, and quantifiable standards.

For a crop to become certified by Protected Harvest, one requirement of farmers is that they frequently monitor (or scout) their fields, so that they can make the best decisions as to how to manage the threat of any pests.

By understanding the natural life cycle of pests and identifying their natural enemies, farmers can skillfully employ techniques that minimize impacts on the environment. This approach is known as Biointensive Integrated Pest Management (BioIPM) and is just one component of the Protected Harvest certification program.

To learn more in depth about the practices that growers must use, we invite you to read a more complete description of these Standards (Note: Standards for LODI RULES). (Return to Top)

The Soil Association of the United Kingdom was founded in 1946 by a group of farmers, scientists and nutritionists who observed a direct connection between farming practice and plant, animal, human and environmental health.

Today the Soil Association is the UK's leading organic organization, with over 180 staff based in our Bristol headquarters, in regional centers and working as certification inspectors across the country.

The Soil Association exists to research, develop and promote sustainable relationships between the soil, plants, animals, people and the biosphere, in order to produce healthy food and other products while protecting and enhancing the environment. You might expect something so vital to be organized and supported by the government. But in fact the Soil Association is a charity, reliant on donations and on the support of its members and the public to carry out its work. (Return to Top)

The National Organic Program (NOP) develops, implements, and administers national production, handling, and labeling standards for organic agricultural products.

The NOP also accredits the certifying agents (foreign and domestic) who inspect organic production and handling operations to certify that they meet USDA standards.

USDA Accredited Certifying Agents (Domestic and Foreign)
Labeling Alcohol Beverages - USA - Alcohol Beverages Labeled with Organic Claims. United States Department of Agriculture (Return to Top)

References:

• Addendum - Section includes supplementary information which may be of interest or use to the reader. The use of the Addendum and the citations and references within kennuncorked.com

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