Plant-Based Beauty |Thoughtfully Chosen | Natural Care for Hair & Skin
When you buy an organic product, how do you know that it really meets organic standards?
The terms organic and certified organic are often used when talking about natural and organic products, but there is an important difference. Certification provides independent verification that a product and the way it is produced meet defined organic standards.
Organic refers to the way plants and agricultural products are grown, harvested and processed.
Organic production standards generally restrict the use of synthetic fertilisers, pesticides, herbicides, growth regulators and genetically modified organisms (GMOs), with requirements covering how the raw materials are produced and handled.
However, simply seeing the word “organic” on a product does not tell you who has independently verified those claims.
The most reliable way for a consumer to know that a product meets recognised organic standards is through independent third-party certification.
Organic certification is a whole-systems approach. Depending on the certification standard and product, it can cover the soil and growing conditions, the source of raw materials, harvesting, processing, handling, storage and traceability.
An independent certifying organisation audits the business and its processes to ensure that the organic integrity of the product is maintained.
This is why obtaining organic certification involves considerably more work and expense than simply sourcing ingredients described as organic.
There can be different arrangements for selling certified organic products in Australia.
A wholesaler or retailer may, in some circumstances, purchase a finished certified organic product from a certified supplier and sell that product without further processing, handling or repacking.
In this situation, the product's certification relates to the original certified supplier and product.
For consumers, it is therefore worth looking beyond the word “organic” and checking who has certified the product and whether the certification applies to the product you are purchasing.
Another approach is for the Australian company importing or manufacturing the product to undergo its own organic certification process.
This involves independent auditing of the company's processes and organic supply chain. The certifier can review the source and traceability of ingredients, purchasing records, processing and handling, storage and the movement of certified organic goods.
Certification is subject to ongoing requirements and auditing, rather than being a one-off approval.
At Nature Shop, we decided to go all the way with organic certification.
When we import a certified organic product, we ensure that the product is also certified in Australia. This gives our customers the reassurance that its organic status has been assessed under an Australian certification system.
When we manufacture a product using organic ingredients that are available locally, we source certified organic ingredients and ensure that our own processes meet organic certification requirements.
We do not simply rely on the organic certification of another company for products that we manufacture or repackage ourselves.
Where possible, we source our raw ingredients directly from organic farmers and co-operatives. This helps us maintain greater transparency over where our ingredients come from and how they enter our supply chain.
All our certified organic products are certified by Australian Certified Organic.
For us, certification is about more than putting the word “organic” on a label. It is about giving our customers confidence in the source, handling, processing and traceability of the products they buy from us.
When you choose a Nature Shop Certified Organic product, you can look for the Australian Certified Organic certification as independent assurance of its organic status.
Comments will be approved before showing up.