The presentation will give an overview about organic farming, processing and inspection systems in the European Union which is regulated by EU regulation on organic farming 2092/91.
The production on farmer's level is defined (Annex I). Annex II regulates the use of mineral fertilizers and chemical pesticides. Soil fertility must be maintained or even increased. The EU Regulation regulates plant production and organic husbandry.
An overview about the definition on allowed inputs of organic and non organic origin and the labelling requirements for non processed and processed products is given. Products may be labelled as organic if at least 95% of the ingredients are from allowed organic origin. In the case of products with at least 70% of organic ingredients, a reference to the organic production may only be made in the ingredients list and on the label referencing the organic percentage. All allowed processing inputs including those of conventional origin are defined in Annex VI of the regulation.
Beneath the definition of production and the requirements for labelling the inspection system is defined in the Regulation (Annex 3). The fundamental requirement is the physical annual inspection of every operator in the chain of production. Additional spot checks are required which might be announced or unannounced. Also the approval of inspection bodies is defined. Either the state authority itself or private inspection bodies approved by the authority are performing inspections.
Equivalent rules for production and labelling apply to imports from non-EU countries. The equivalence of production and processing rules, of the inspection system and of documentation requirements must be proven to the EU Commission in Brussels or to the competent authority of the respective EU member state approving imports. The EU Commission decides on including a non-EU country in the Third Country List (Article 11, 1) or the national authority on import allowances (Article 11, 6).
