Article Index
Certification and Standards
Organic Standards
Advantages of Certification
All Pages

Organic Standards

Organic certification is based upon documents called organic standards. The current National Standard and the new Australian Standard AS6000 are based upon two international standards, one operated by the United Nations Food and Agriculture program (FAO) – otherwise known as the CODEX Alimentarious Standard for Organic Produce, and another operated by the International Federation for Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM) (the peak body for the organic industry), known as the IFOAM Norms or the IFOAM Basic Standard, and on national standards operated by other countries.

The new Australian Standard AS6000 came into effect in October 2009. Over the next 12-24 months we expect the AS6000 to replace the National Standard.

Organic standards set out the minimum requirements for production, processing and labelling of organic produce. They also establish the minimum requirements for inspection of individuals producing organic products, and the minimum requirements for certifying organic operators.

Any producer or processor who wants to export produce that is labelled organic or biodynamic must demonstrate compliance with at least the requirements of the standard. To achieve this certification, producers and processors need to be certified by one of the Australian Quarantine & Inspection Service (AQIS) accredited Certifying Bodies.

There are a number of Certifying Bodies (CBs) in Australia.  Visit the Certifier Choice section on this website for further information.

Some Australian CB’s use the National Standard only but some publish their own Standard, which complies with the National Standard, and may have additional requirements covering farming activities and record keeping obligations. We will call these the ‘certification standard’, as they are the documents used in the field by inspectors (or auditors).

If you do plan to gain certification, an early part of your research process should be to obtain a copy of the National Standard, which can be downloaded from the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (232Kb pdf) website or the CBs certification standard from one of the CB’s, and study them in detail. Apart from educating yourself about the requirements, reading the standards will give you a good sense of whether you can comply with the growing systems and record keeping procedures required.

Growers who apply for certification generally sign a statutory declaration that they have:

• Read and understood the Standard
• Are growing according to the Standard
• Intend to continue to grow according to the Standard, and
• Have provided accurate information concerning their growing practices

Organic certification requires that produce can be tracked all the way ‘from paddock to plate’. Inspection of organic producers and handlers by CB’s ensures that there is a complete audit chain that can prove organic produce has been grown, harvested, stored and transported in a way that protects the produce from contamination by synthetic chemicals or radiation. Organic produce therefore is sold almost exclusively through direct outlets or via certified organic wholesalers and retailers. This also explains why organic produce in supermarkets is always wrapped and not loose – it has been collated and packaged in certified establishments to comply with the audit chain requirement.