Organic exports stuck at port over standards

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Published: August 29, 2002

A misunderstanding about how Canadian certification agencies operate is

temporarily blocking organic trade with Europe.

Last week the Dutch ministry of agriculture refused a shipment of

organic fenugreek from Canada. Canadian government officials initially

thought it was an isolated incident that could be cleared up quickly

through diplomatic channels. But it appears the problem runs deeper.

Another incident has surfaced involving a shipment of an unspecified

organic product from British Columbia. It was refused last week by

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authorities in the United Kingdom.

The Western Producer has obtained a document written by the deputy

secretary of the U.K. Register of Organic Food Standards that sheds

light on why these shipments are being declined.

It advises European Union members that organic shipments inspected or

certified by agencies accredited throughout the United States’ new

National Organic Program, or NOP, will not be authorized.

That’s because the Europeans have not had time to review the new U.S.

national standards to see if they are equivalent to theirs.

They want to ensure that products inspected under that system were

grown under production rules and under an inspection system similar to

what they employ.

“Although we will make every effort to expedite the reassessment of

equivalency, importers should be aware that it will take some time. We

may need to ask for further information from you and your inspection

body,” stated the document.

The European stance has created a dilemma for Canadian organic

producers and exporters. Some of the biggest certification bodies

operating in this country have been accredited through the NOP program.

“Canada got caught in the loop,” said Gilbert Parent, Agriculture

Canada’s national organic specialist.

He said the Europeans are failing to recognize that some Canadian

certification agencies are accredited to many different standards,

including American and European standards.

“It’s all a question of misunderstanding,” said Parent.

One of those agencies with multiple accreditations is OCPP/Pro-Cert

Canada Inc., the outfit that certified the shipment of fenugreek

destined for Holland.

“There is no reason to throw OCPP/Pro in with the NOP accredited

agencies,” said general manager Wally Hamm.

He said the Dutch overlooked the fact that the shipment was certified

to both American and European standards and certificates were issued

for each certification.

“Thank God we did that,” said Hamm, who plans to contact European

officials this week to explain his position.

Hamm expects the problem surrounding the fenugreek shipment to be

resolved through diplomatic channels quickly, but he wonders what an

incident like this signals.

Organic certifiers around the world were supposed to have access to the

European market as long as they complied with local import requirements

up until Dec. 31, 2005. Hamm said there now appears to be a

deterioration in that policy.

A senior trade policy analyst with Agriculture Canada is similarly

perplexed by the European action. Marie-France Huot said it is strange

that Canada wasn’t notified by its trading partners about the apparent

problems with the shipments.

She has been in contact with Canadian diplomats in the Netherlands,

Belgium and the United Kingdom trying to resolve the issue. They plan

to explain to the Europeans this week that many Canadian agencies

certify to European standards in addition to the NOP.

About the author

Sean Pratt

Sean Pratt

Reporter/Analyst

Sean Pratt has been working at The Western Producer since 1993 after graduating from the University of Regina’s School of Journalism. Sean also has a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Saskatchewan and worked in a bank for a few years before switching careers. Sean primarily writes markets and policy stories about the grain industry and has attended more than 100 conferences over the past three decades. He has received awards from the Canadian Farm Writers Federation, North American Agricultural Journalists and the American Agricultural Editors Association.

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