EU-Eco-Regulation International Organic Certification has become widely accepted as the accepted standards used to various governmental bodies to insure that products claiming to be at least “95% Organic” live up to required organic standards. The two most widely accepted certification labels, The EU-Eco-Regulation and the USDA Organic, are noted as being in the forefront of international organic standard certifications; although many other countries, including Canada, the U.K., Australia, and Japan have their own organic certification labeling as well.
International concern regarding synthetic vitamin, medicinal, and growth hormone additives to meat and other agricultural produce has resulted in stricter attention being given by government bodies to the standards given to food and other products that are reputed to be derived from organic sources.
Both the EU-Eco-Regulation and USDA Organic certification symbols became law in the early 1990’s, meaning that farms involved in organic food production must comply with these regulations in order for their products to be certified with these labels. Notations as to whether the labeled is either 100% or 95% organic indicates that these products comply with the required governmental criteria regarding the farming and processing of their organic products. Everything used in the production of these products, including transportation and storage of the products must conform to the required criteria. The addition of chemicals into the products are either strictly limited or forbidden altogether.
Some countries, including Canada and Australia, still do not have set national laws concerning the standards placed on organically grown and produced products; and what national standards are in place are only used as ‘guidelines’. Australia, though having very strict quarantine standards for food items entering the country, has only a ‘de-facto’ standard for products being exported. The task of certifying exported food products, including beef, lamb and other meat products, is left to the task of at least seven individual certification organizations, the largest being the Australian Certified Organic organization.
A number of issues and problems still exist concerning the proper certification of bona-fide organic products. Vested interest lobbies try to ‘water down’ the organic content requirement of various products in order to save on production and transportation costs. A certain amount of miss-labeling of products is a still evident, with many being labeled as being “naturally grown”. These products must not be considered as having the same standards as the ones bearing either the EU-Eco or UDSA Organic symbols, as the latter have undergone strict governmental regulatory inspection and certification.
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