Organic News
How do I know it's organic?
Despite a high profile for organic produce many consumers are still confused about what 'organic' really means. All food sold as organic must comply with EU regulations and be certified as organic. In Ireland, there are a set of Irish Organic Standards governing organic production and processing. These standards are agreed between the certification bodies and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (DAFF), which regulates the sector.
The certification bodies are organisations approved by DAFF to carry out inspection and certification of organic products. There are two such bodies in Ireland, The Irish Organic Farmers and Growers Association (IOFGA) and the Organic Trust. If you see either of these logos on a product it means that it is certified organic by that body.
If a farmer or grower wishes to become organic they must submit a detailed plan to one of the certification bodies, undergo at least one inspection annually, abide by Irish organic standards and go through a conversion period. When that period is successfully completed, they can then sell their produce as certified organic as soon as full organic status has been awarded. Every producer and processor must display their allocated number and the code of the certifying body on the products they sell.
There are many imported organic products on sale in Ireland and these will carry the certification details of the agency and country where produced. The EU has a list of approved third countries whose organic produce is recognized as equivalent to EU standards. For all other third countries, importers can be granted authorisations by Member States to import certain products. They have to prove that these products satisfy identical or equivalent requirements as organic products from the EU.
If you have any doubts about the authenticity of products sold as organic always ask the seller for their licence number which can be checked with the certifying agency or DAFF.
