On December 16-18, 2010, the Certification and Accreditation Administration of the People's Republic of China (CNCA) held the Fourth Organic Product Certification Technical Forum in Hangzhou. The meeting had two main topics:บทความมาจากFOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/th/11278/
First, interpreting the newly revised national standard for Organic Products; introducing the revision status of the Measures for the Administration of Organic Product Certification and the Implementation Rules for Organic Product Certification, as well as the evaluation mechanism for input substances in organic product production, etc.บทความมาจากFOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/th/11278/
From the revisions to the Standard, the Administrative Measures, and the Implementation Rules, it can be seen that the state has imposed stricter and more standardized certification management on the production, processing, operation, and sale of organic products, which has met the basic requirements for international alignment.บทความมาจากFOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/th/11278/
This revision highlighted the principle of “strictness.” Certification activity procedures such as on-site inspection, product testing, conversion periods, and input substances were uniformly standardized. For example:บทความมาจากFOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/th/11278/
- In response to the practice by certain certification bodies of arbitrarily shortening conversion periods, the new Standard requires that certification bodies may only issue certification certificates 12 months after the first on-site inspection, and stipulates that for enterprises whose certification has been rejected, other certification bodies may not accept their certification applications within 12 months.
- In order to enhance the traceability of organic products, all certification bodies are required to introduce the use of sales certificates.
- In order to avoid confusion caused by chaotic labeling and consumer misunderstanding, only the national mark is allowed on product packaging, and the use of certification body marks is no longer required.
- In principle, input substances not listed in the Standard are no longer permitted to be used. If they must be used, the certification body must report to the CNCA and may use them only after evaluation.
- Supervision of imported organic products shall be strengthened. All organic products entering China must be certified by certification bodies recognized by China.
- In order to standardize the scope of certified products, a catalog of organic product certification has been formulated. Products not listed in the catalog may not be certified.
- At the same time, the entry threshold for certification bodies has been raised, new requirements have been proposed regarding the personnel, number, and professional qualifications of certification bodies, and the approval of certification bodies' certification scope has been refined.
Second, the seminar also pointed out that the development of organic product certification in China is still in a period of major opportunity.บทความมาจากFOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/th/11278/
Since its establishment in 2001, the CNCA has unified China's certification and accreditation organizational structure and working mechanisms, established a unified national accreditation system, and unified the accreditation work system. This has set China's accreditation work on a track of legalization and standardization. The CNCA has always attached great importance to food and agricultural product certification work. At present, it has established a video and agricultural product certification and accreditation system covering the entire process “from farm to table,” which has been listed as one of the three core tasks of the CNCA.บทความมาจากFOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/th/11278/
The Party Central Committee and the State Council attach great importance to the development of organic agriculture. The report of the Third Plenary Session of the Seventeenth Central Committee specifically pointed out support for the development of organic agriculture, and the State Council's No. 1 document each year has also repeatedly mentioned vigorously developing organic agriculture. The Fifth Plenary Session of the Seventeenth Central Committee once again emphasized during the “Twelfth Five-Year Plan” period to “adhere to taking the building of a resource-conserving and environment-friendly society as an important focus for accelerating the transformation of the economic development model.” These policies are favorable guarantees for the development of organic agriculture.บทความมาจากFOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/th/11278/
At the same time, the number of organic certifications in China is still relatively small, which is extremely disproportionate to China's status as a major agricultural country and a major agricultural trading country. China's annual exports of organic products amount to only a few hundred million U.S. dollars, while the European Union's annual consumption of organic products is as high as 34 billion euros. It can be said that China's development of organic agriculture has great prospects and is in the ascendant. In order to promote the development of organic agriculture, in 2011 the CNCA will for the first time carry out the establishment of organic certification demonstration zones nationwide, which will fully mobilize the enthusiasm of local governments, thereby promoting the development of organic certification and food and agricultural product certification, setting an example for the standardized and healthy development of organic agriculture, vindicating the high-quality reputation of organic products, enabling people across the country to enjoy high-quality and reassuring organic products, promoting the substantial development of the organic industry, and making contributions to revitalizing the rural economy.บทความมาจากFOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/th/11278/