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The IFOAM Accreditation Programs |
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IFOAM Accreditation
IFOAM Accreditation is primarily a means of ensuring fair and
orderly trade of organic products. It is in this sense a service
for the trade and producers as well as for certifiers. IFOAM Accreditation facilitates equivalency of organic certification
bodies worldwide by confirming whether they meet IFOAM's international
norms.
The IFOAM Accreditation Program is a service within the IFOAM Organic Gurantee System that is offered to
certification bodies. The IFOAM Basic Standards along with the IFOAM
Accreditation Criteria (together called The IFOAM Norms) establish the
requirements for certification bodies seeking IFOAM accreditation. IFOAM
accreditation is awarded to certification bodies that use certification standards that meet the IFOAM
Basic Standards. The IFOAM Standard, once approved (expected date August 2012) will replace the IFOAM Basic Standards in this role. Additionally, the certification body itself must
demonstrate compliance with the IFOAM Accreditation Criteria (soon to be renamed "IFOAM Accreditation Requirements"), which are
requirements for how certification is conducted.
IFOAM accreditation is carried out by the International Organic Accreditation Service Inc. (IOAS) under an Agreement with
IFOAM. Although it operates as an independent body, the IOAS is a
key component of the Organic Guarantee System. It accepts and
reviews accreditation applications, conducts site evaluations, and
grants IFOAM accreditation to compliant applicants. IOAS also
administers the IFOAM Seal, and together with IFOAM, it promotes the
IFOAM Accreditation Program.
For further information on the IFOAM Accreditation program please visit the IOAS Website.
For further information on the Organic Guarantee System and the IFOAM Norms please visit the Organic Guarantee System Section of the IFOAM website.
IFOAM Global Organic System Accreditation (IGOSA)
Together with the IOAS, IFOAM has launched in 2010 a new accreditation service based upon the renown and respected IFOAM Accreditation Criteria (/Requirements) for certification bodies.
Certification bodies choosing this service can benefit from all the quality improvement measures inherent in the IFOAM Accreditation Requirements but can apply it to a much broader range of organic standard or regulations. All certification done on the basis of a private standard or government regulation approved in the IFOAM Family of Standards can fall in the scope of the IGOSA. Hence the IFOAM Global Organic System Accreditation, unlike the IFOAM Accreditation, is not based on the concept of compliance with a particular production standard, but on the concept of equivalence, which is at the core of the IFOAM Family of Standards. The concept of full compliance remains however applied with regards to the control requirements (full compliance with the IFOAM Accreditation Requirements is required). The accreditation process is conducted by the IOAS, in a similar way as for the IFOAM Accreditation.
For more information on IFOAM norms that are the basis of these two accreditation program, click here.
IFOAM advocates for recognition of those programs by governments. Recommendations on how governments can regulate the import of organic products based on the concept of equivalence, using those accreditation programs, is explained under the IFOAM Policy Brief on Imports.
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