In 1973 the Soil Association took the next step and formed the Soil Association Organic Marketing Company Limited as a wholly owned subsidiary. Initially its role was to market products grown to the Soil Association standards. However, it soon dropped marketing to concentrate on certification.
Through the ’70s and early ’80s the inspection element was informal and cursory, but this gradually changed as the organic method of production became more prominent. Later, to reflect this change, the company changed its name to Soil Association Certification Limited (SA Certification).
IFOAM
In 1972 Lady Eve Balfour, JI Rodale and a number of others formed the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM), recognizing the international nature of organic farming. Their aim was to bring together the various movements and to share information across language, cultural and geographic boundaries. It produced its first ‘basic’ standards (for information and education, not certification) in 1980.
Governments
By the late ’80s the organic market was sufficiently strong that governments started to take an interest, wishing to protect the consumer from possible fraud. In 1987 the Minister of Agriculture announced the formation of UKROFS (UK Register of Organic Food Standards).Its brief was to draw up a minimum UK organic standard, to register the organic certifiers including their inspectors, and to certify those wishing to by-pass the private bodies.
The EU was also looking at organic farming. Based on the IFOAM standards it published its ‘organic’ regulation (no.2092/91) in 1991.However, it was not until 1999 that livestock standards were legally included in the regulation. This official definition and control of organic farming also allowed the authorities to give financial support to organic farmers. This stimulated the significant, sometimes dramatic, growth that the organic market still enjoys.
Several countries followed the EU’s lead, including the USA, Japan, Australia and many smaller nations, particularly those exporting to the big trading blocks. Thus the proliferation of national organic laws mirrors the many private organic standards that have emerged.
Partly to address the Codex Alimentarius Commission of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), which sets global standards for farming and food, produced guidelines for organic farming. It used the EU regulation as its starting point. The EU recently stated that it will work to support these becoming the basis for global harmonization of organic standards.
IFOAM was also active. It set up the IFOAM accreditation program in 1992 to provide an international service that would allow ‘one inspection, one certification, one accreditation’. Our global partnership program is IFOAM accredited.
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