Date of issue: 3 April 2023
Date of effect: 10 February 2023
Reference Number: IAN 2023-02
Attention
Organic operators and exporters, organic certifying bodies, industry bodies
Purpose
Public release of two updated policy documents – the Administrative Arrangements for Approved Arrangements and the Requirements to Issue and Manage Organic Goods Certificates.
Key points
The Organic Exports Program have issued two policy documents – the Administrative Arrangements for Approved Arrangements and the Requirements to Issue and Manage Organic Goods Certificates.
These two documents replace the 2014 policy documents titled:
- Government Administrative Arrangements for Approved Certifying Organisations Managing Inspection and Certification Programs for the Export of Certified Australian Organic and Biodynamic Produce.
- Guidelines for the Issue of Organic Produce Certificates to All Markets
- Guidelines for the Management of Organic Produce Certificates by Approved Certifying Organisations
Following 8 months of intensive work by the program with the six approved certifying bodies, these policy documents were developed ensuring they were fit for purpose while maintaining the level of, and approach to, regulatory oversight expected under the Export Control Act 2020 and Export Control (Organic Goods) Rules 2021. The documents provide additional clarification on organic export operation requirements while bringing consistency across the organic export regulatory framework. The Administrative Arrangements for Approved Arrangements and the Requirements to Issue and Manage Organic Goods Certificates were issued to approved certifying bodies on the 10th of February 2023 and are now in force. These documents can be found on our Approved certifying bodies webpage.
Further information
Contact OrganicExports@aff.gov.au if you have any queries.
The information provided in this advice is current at the time of writing and is intended for use as guidance only and should not be taken as definitive or exhaustive. The Commonwealth endeavours to keep information current and accurate, however, it may be subject to change without notice. Exporters are encouraged to verify these details with their importers prior to undertaking production/exports. The Commonwealth will not accept liability for any loss resulting from reliance on information contained in this notice.