Chhattisgarh - Get Organic Agriculture Product Certificate

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Procedure

Apply In-Person:

1. A person (a farmer/ group of farmer’s /processor/ trader) who is looking for an organic farming certificate for their agricultural produce must ensure that his/her farm conforms to the standards laid out by the National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP) for organic crop production.
2. They must submit an application in the requisite format along with the fee and complete field verification as specified by the National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP).
3. The Chhattisgarh Certification Society India for Forestry & Agriculture (CGCERT) has provided the general standards for organic crop production which are available in the CGERT website Link under downloads section as Operators guidelines Link
4. The application form is available in the following link : Link. The same can be downloaded from the CGERT website under downloads and download application packets section.
5. The operator will have to submit an application along with annual plan, map and three year field history for crops planted and inputs applied.
6. CGCERT screens the application and supportive documentations to ensure completeness for carrying out further certification process. If satisfied, then operator is asked to deposit applicable fees.
7. The operator has to sign a contract with CGCERT along with deposition of fees. Applicants signing a contract with CGCERT shall commit him / herself to comply with organic standards throughout the system .Permit and cooperate in on-site inspection visits (announced or unannounced) of organic production sites (storage, parcels, buildings etc.) and if applicable conventional production sites. Provide information of use of any prohibited substance or contamination any modification with regard to the annual plan.
8. Standard inspection procedures shall be followed by the CGCERT as per the NPOP standards. The inspector shall have access to all production facilities, including account and other documentation of the operators.
9. On the basis of inspection report if CGCERT finds that the operation is in compliant with NPOP standards, CGCERT will grant or otherwise deny certification.
10. All the operators shall be entitled to use this logo for certified organics only under the certification Programme.
11. In case any misuse or violations detected by CGCERT against operator, the licensee shall have to abide by CGCERT's scale of sanction.

Apply through Centres:

1. To Get Organic Agriculture Product Certificate, the applicant shall visit the nearest CSC/Tehsil Centre. Find contacts to CSC centres in the link provided:Link
2. Procure the application form from the concerned centre and fill it up with the necessary details required for the process.
3. Make sure to attach all the "Required Documents" along with the application form before submission.
4. Provide authorized signatory and photograph, wherever applicable.
5. Now submit the application to the office of the concerned centre.
6. On successful verification, the applicant will be notified by the CSC centre.

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Required Documents

The below are the necessary documents required during inspection:-

• List of crops being grown, field locations (maps), acreages, and estimated yields
• Last three years field history.
• Farm diary which includes documentation of all field activity performed (cultivation, weed control, use of manure or fertilizers (input application record), spraying, pruning, harvesting, storage etc.) o Input purchase records for all inputs used for crop nutrients, pest, disease, or weed control.
• Soil management activities, including crop rotation and erosion prevention activities
• Pest and disease management activities for control of crop pests (insects/mites/invertebrates/vertebrates), diseases, and weeds, including preventative practices and materials used
• Audit trail documents that trace products from the source/ field of origin to final use or sale. It may require the following.
• Field, planting and production records
• Harvest and yield records
• Post-harvest handling records
• Storage records
• Transport records
• Sales records
• Organic Integrity: Documentation of measures to avoid contamination and commingling, as applicable to your operation
• Information about neighbouring land use
• Prevention of contamination from borders
• Production, harvest, and sales records for buffer crops, transitional or conventional crops
• Storage: adequate separation of allowed materials from any non-allowed products
• contamination prevention

Office Locations & Contacts

CHHATTISGARH CERTIFICATION SOCIETY(for Forest and Agriculture Produces )
S.F.R.T.I. Campus, Near Vidhan Sabha,
Zero Point, Baloda Bazar Road,
Post – Mandhar, Raipur,
C.G. 493111
Phone: 0771-2283249 ,
Fax – 2283249,
E. Mail: [email protected], [email protected]

Eligibility

The product to get the certification needs to be associated with the authenticity since two to three years. For first time certification, the soil must meet the basic requirements of being free from the use of prohibited substances (synthetic chemicals, etc) for a number of years. A conventional farm must adhere to organic standards for this period.

Fees

The detailed fee structure is available at Link

Validity

Once you have been certified by CGCERT, you must apply for re-certification every year to maintain your certification status .

Documents to Use

• General standards for organic crop production - Link
• Application form - Link
• Application form for Group certification : Link
• Procedure for Organic certification - Link
• Fee structure - Link

Sample Documents

Please attach sample completed documents that would help other people.

Processing Time

That depends on the history of your operations and your compliances with certification standards and regulations. It takes two years for annual crops and three years for perennial crops to be certified as organic.

Related Videos

Videos explaining the procedure or to fill the applications.
Attach videos using the following tag <&video type='website'>video ID|width|height<&/video&> from external websites.
Please remove the '&' inside the tags during implementation.
Website = allocine, blip, dailymotion, facebook, gametrailers, googlevideo, html5, metacafe, myspace, revver,
sevenload, viddler, vimeo, youku, youtube
width = 560, height = 340, Video ID = Can be obtained from the URL of webpage where the video is displayed.
e.g In the following url 'http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0US7oR_t3M' Video ID is 'Y0US7oR_t3M'.

Instructions

• Certification decision shall be taken up by the certification committee of CGCERT in compliant with the relevant standards on the basis of inspection/assessment report and evaluation report.
• All the certification decisions shall be taken in an objective, impartial and transparent way by the certification committee and shall be properly recorded in the concerned file of the operator.
• The certification decision shall be communicated to the operator along with non-conformity, if any, that have to be rectified in order to comply with the certification requirements and the extent of further evaluation or testing required.
• The CGCERT shall have the right to impose conditions. Where conditions require corrective actions subsequent to certification, time limit shall be imposed.

Required Information

The below are the necessary details for Organic Agriculture product registration:

• Name & Address of the Organic Producer
• Certification Requirement
• Certification Requirement under which standard
• Total area of farm
• Cropping system followed
• Inputs applied to previous crops
• Survey No.
• GPS reading of the farm
• Source of manure
• Plant protection method
• Soil problems
• Weed management methods
• Source of irrigation
• Equipment details
• Storage facility
• Details of fee Remittance
• Drying yard facilities

Need for the Document

Organic certification addresses a growing worldwide demand for organic food. It is intended to assure quality and prevent fraud. For organic producers, certification identifies suppliers of products approved for use in certified operations. For consumers, "certified organic" serves as a product assurance, similar to "low fat",
"100% whole wheat", or "no artificial preservatives". Certification is essentially aimed at regulating and facilitating the sale of organic products to consumers. Individual certification bodies have their own service marks, which can act as branding to consumers—a certifier may promote the high consumer recognition value of its logo as a marketing advantage to producers. Most certification bodies operate organic standards that meet the National government's minimum requirements.

Information which might help

• It is CGCERT's policy to provide applicants with an opportunity of formal appeal against certification decision of CGCERT with which they disagree. An applicant, who is dissatisfied with the certification decision, can appeal to the CGCERT in writing with supporting documents like inspection checklist, notification of non-compliances, copy of certification decision and the evidence against the decision. The appeals committee of CGCERT will consider the matter by careful examining the certification procedures undertaken by the operator and compliance of the operator with the applicable standards i.e. NPOP standards in objective and impartial way. All the decisions taken by the Appeal Committee shall be final.

• The appeal shall be decided within ninety days from the date of acknowledgement of appeal. However applicants may also submit formal appeal to APEDA against the decisions of Appeal Committee of CGCERT.

• CGCERT shall have policy for dealing with complaints and disputes which may relate to criticism of an operator certified by CGCERT or other subject.

• The complainant has may lodge his / her complaint to CGCERT in the official website or by letter with evidence that supports the allegations or non-compliances with applicable standards. The complainant shall be informed of the general outcome of the complaint in a way which does not prejudice the confidentiality of the party concerned

Other uses of the Document/Certificate

India Organic Certification is a label given to organic products after validation, which ensures that the product or raw materials used in the product were grown through organic farming - without any chemical fertilizers,  pesticides, or induced hormones. A trademark - "India Organic" will be granted on the basis of compliance with the National Standards for Organic Production (NSOP). Communicating the genuineness as well as the origin of the product, this trademark will be owned by the Government of India

External Links

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Others

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