The 6 Australian Organic Certification Bodies
Who do you contact to become organically certified in Australia?
The Australian government has an Organic & Biodiversity Standard and gives authority to 6 certification bodies in Australia to administer certification to the national organic standard. The 6 certification bodies all use the national organic standard as a base standard.
The organic certification bodies currently in Australia are:
NASAA
Australian Certified Organic (ACO)
Organic Food Chain
Bio-Dynamic Research Institute
AUS-QUAL
Safe Food QLD
What’s the difference?
Two of these bodies, NASAA & ACO, also have their own additional requirements – such as conditions for international organic standards, allowing you to export your produce internationally. Each organic certification body must comply with the national standard, on top of this the certifying body may have additional requirements for their members to comply with.
The only other difference really comes down to location and pricing for certification and ongoing auditing and assessment. You really need to research each to find out what’s best for you or consult with an organic consultant such as Organic Systems and Solutions.
View their video on an introduction to Organic Certification.
Why are Beachport Liquid Minerals certified with NASAA?
Beachport Liquid Minerals is based in Mount Gambier, South Australia, whilst NASAA are also based in South Australia, which benefits us logistically when organising on-site visits with our organic certifier.
We appreciate that NASAA’s Standard covers the organic supply chain – from input manufacturers to producers, processors to wholesale and retail operations – ensuring organic integrity ‘from paddock to plate’.
NASAA was Australia’s first organic certifying body, they have considerable knowledge of the organic industry and are certifiers for over 10 countries globally.
At Beachport Liquid Minerals we believe that primary production should be done in a socially and environmentally responsible manner. NASAA is focussed on the ethical and innovative education of organic certification throughout Australia, which resonates with our mission to broaden and strengthen the knowledge of livestock producers in Australia.
What does this mean for organic livestock producers?
Luckily for you, it doesn’t change anything from your end!
Beachport Liquid Minerals is a certified organic input for organic livestock producers, and our certification came from NASAA. As explained above there are varying organic certifiers in Australia – all of which use the government’s standard as a base. We are also USDA NOP compliant, meaning that your export product can also be labelled/sold as organic in the United States of America.
If you are certified by a group other than NASAA you can still use our products, we are organically certified in Australia. Always check with your certifying body to ensure compliance.