The Organic Food Federation

Frequently Asked Questions
01. Why is organic certification necessary?
It is a mandatory requirement that all products labelled organic must be certified by an approved certification body. Organic produce can be traced from the farm to the fork with every process along the way requiring a certificate of conformity. If the product is altered in any way the operation must be registered and certified. This enables full traceability. In effect the organic label can be regarded as a a brand. Consumers can rely on the fact that products comply with organic standards and have been produced or processed by approved operators. Certification provides assurance that this is the case.
02. Why the Organic Food Federation?
The Federation
- Prides itself on providing a personal service with the help of our knowledgeable and friendly staff.
- Is accredited by UKAS to ISO/IEC 17065:2012.
- Can help you source organic products.
- Our standards and explanatory notes can be downloaded from this website.
- Our inspectors are all fully qualified to carry out organics audits.
03. Who actually needs to have Organic Certification?
- Processors that manufacture or alter an organic product in any way including packing or labelling must be certified. This must be obtained for any product / process which claims to be organic or makes use of the word organic in the ingredients listing.
- Producers must obtain organic certification for land, crops and livestock.
- Warehouse and storage operations must obtain certification for the storage of organic goods.
- Traders who are selling their organic products business to business must be certified.
- Retailers who are selling their products online, such as via Amazon must be certified.
- Importers wishing to import organic products into the United Kingdom must be certified prior to undertaking this operation.
- Exporters wishing to export organic products to the EU or third countries must be organically certified in order to be able to undertake this.
04. How do I apply for Organic Certification?
The Process is simple
- Download the relevant application for quotation form from the ‘How to Join’ page of our website and complete and return it to info@orgfoodfed.com.
- Feel free to contact our office (01760 720444) if you have any queries relating to your requirements or wish to discuss the process of obtaining organic certification.
- Once we have received a copy of a completed application for quotation form a member of our team will contact you in order to discuss your requirements in more depth. Following on from this a quotation will be generated and emailed out.
- Upon receipt of your quotation if you wish to undertake certification we would ask that you complete and return the relevant certification agreement form along with a copy of your signed quotation and payment of a deposit.
- Following the receipt of the completed paperwork and deposit, new operators will be allocated to an auditor who will contact them to arrange a convenient date and time for an inspection.
05. Can the Organic Food Federation carry our product searches for me?
Yes. We can put you in touch with suppliers of specific organic ingredients. Contact a member of staff and we will be happy to help with your search requirements.
06. What is the Federation’s position on GMOs?
The organic regulations do not permit the inclusion of any genetically modified material in any organic product.
07. Is the Federation Code (GB-ORG-04) and logo acceptable to retailers?
Our code GB-ORG-04 is required to be used on all organic goods that are manufactured, packaged and labelled by operators that are certified by the Organic Food Federation. GB-ORG-04 is the official designated code for the Organic Food Federation.
Our logo demonstrates that your product complies with the organic regulations. If you look on the supermarket shelves there are many Organic Food Federation products available. Our logo is available for use on the products of operators certified by the Organic Food Federation as well as for the purposes of marketing. The use of our logo is optional.
08. How much will certification cost?
Our operators are unique so we offer an individual quotation system
- We do not charge on turnover or for our standards or for the use of our logo.
- Individual applications are looked at on a case-by-case basis and quotations are issued according to the amount of work involved in the audit and certification process.
- Once quoted, if you are happy with the quotation we would ask that a signed copy should be returned to the office along with payment of a deposit and completion of the relevant certification agreement form.
- Once this is received one of our auditors will be allocated to your operation and will contact you in order to arrange a convenient date and time for the inspection.
- Please contact a member of our team if you have any queries relating to the application process.
9. How do I apply for Organic Entry Level scheme grants?
All the most up to date information relating to the organic entry level scheme can be found on the Natural England website.
For more Information please click here.
31 Turbine Way, Eco Tech Business Park, Swaffham, Norfolk, United Kingdom, PE37 7XD
Tel +44(0)1760 720444 Fax +44(0)1760 720790 info@orgfoodfed.com