FoodChain ID provides third-party, global certification for organic standards, including the USDA National Organic Program, EU Organic and other worldwide organic certifications through Bioagricert, a FoodChain ID company.
Conversion is a transitional period during which the operator begins the process of certifying products as organically produced. This period applies to producers only.
The conversion period begins on receipt of the notification and contract by the inspection body.
During the conversion period, the activity must be notified and the plots and livestock checked. In other words, as soon as the notification is effective, the organic production regulations must be followed and applied.
This means that during this period, all the production conditions must be met before the product can be marketed as organic.
The typical conversion period is 24 months. For perennial crops, it is 36 months.
Plant products harvested 12 months after notification may be sold with the words ‘in conversion to organic farming’. At the end of the conversion period, if there are no obstacles to certification, the products can be sold as ‘organic products’.
It’s important to remember that it’s the land that’s certified… and so for an annual crop to be certified as ‘organic’, it must have been sown on land that is already certified organic.
