Discover now the full benefits of EU organic products.

In recent years, the tendency of the consumer public to turn to the consumption of European organic products is returning to the forefront more and more vigorously.

One of the reasons is the need of the consumer to use foods with zero presence of chemicals but also foods whose production method is oriented towards the protection of the environment.

So let’s discover in this article together the European organic products.

Certified organic products can be those that have been produced, stored, processed, handled, and placed on the market always by applying the strict technical specifications of the standards and have received certification from an official body.

Then, if a product is certified as organic, it receives a label that certifies that all ecological production methods were used during the production of the product and therefore the product is guaranteed organic.

Organic products are produced without the use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, etc.

Therefore, for the fertilization of the crop but also for general plant protection, only biological and traditional methods and preparations are used.

One of the main reasons why organic farming is growing in Europe is that conventional crops use mainly chemicals.

The chemical preparations of plant protection, fertilization, herbicides, etc. are concentrated in the final product which is the goods and consequently and enter our body through food.

A key feature of organic products is that they do not contain preservatives, flavor enhancers, artificial colors, genetically modified materials and flavor enhancers. This way they have much better taste and quality.

The reliability of organic products is based on a strict system of control and certification described in the laws of the European Union 2092/91 and 1804/99 and every organic farmer is obliged to apply them.

Under this system, a producer is controlled at all stages of production and until disposal. Farmers carry out tests on farms, while a special analysis during cultivation, harvesting, and standardization, certifies that all mandatory rules are observed.

To certify a product as organic it must follow organic farming as a way of production for at least 3 years, and bear the special mark

Some of the most well-known certified as organic products are organic vegetables, organic meats, organic dairy products etc.

Organic production rules:

To produce an organic producer means that it must respect all the rules of organic farming.

In essence, the importance and purpose of organic farming is to protect the environment and production resources as a whole, to preserve and enhance biodiversity, and to build consumer confidence in organic products.

Some basic rules that apply throughout the European territory and bind all producers are These regulations govern all areas of organic production and are based on a number of key principles, such as:

• Prohibition of the use of GMOs
• forbidding the use of ionizing radiation;
• limiting the use of artificial fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides;
• prohibiting the use of hormones and restrict the use of antibiotics and only when necessary for animal health

This means that organic producers need to adopt different approaches to maintaining soil fertility and animal and plant health including:

• crop rotation;
• cultivation of nitrogen fixing plants and other green manure crops to restore the fertility of the soil
• prohibition of use of mineral nitrogen fertilisers;
• to reduce the impact of weeds and pests, organic farmers choose resistant varieties and breeds and techniques encouraging natural pest control;
• encourage the natural immunological defence of animals;
• in order to maintain animal health, organic producers need to prevent overstocking.

Rules on livestock

Also, European breeders who want to promote and sell their products as organic producers must meet some very specific and strict requirements.

These rules ensure the welfare of the animals, their nutrition according to their nutritional needs, and the protection of health and the environment.These rules also help build consumer confidence in organic versus conventional products.

Abiding by organic principles

• Non-organically raised animals may be not brought onto holdings unless for breeding purposes and then only comply with specific rules.
• Farmers have to provide 100% organic feed to their animals in order to market their products as organic.
• The feed should primarily be obtained from the farm where the animals are kept or from farms in the same region.
• Cloning animals and or transferring embryos is strictly forbidden.
• Growth promoters and synthetic amino-acids are prohibited.
• Suckling mammals must be fed with natural, preferably maternal, milk.
• Natural methods of reproduction must be used, artificial insemination is however allowed.
• Non-organic feed materials from plant origin, feed materials from animal and mineral origin, feed additives, certain products used in animal nutrition and processing aids can only be used if they have been specifically authorised for use in organic production.

Animal welfare

• Personnel keeping animals must possess the necessary basic knowledge and skills as regards the health and the welfare needs of the animals.
• Particular attention should be paid to housing conditions, husbandry practices and stocking densities.
• The number of livestock must be limited to minimising overgrazing, erosion, or pollution caused by animals or by the spreading of their manure.
• Animals should have, whenever possible, access to open air or grazing areas.
• Tethering or isolating livestock is prohibited aside from individual animals for a limited period of time and only for welfare, safety or veterinary reasons.
• Hormones or similar substances are not permitted, unless as a form of veterinary therapeutic treatment for an individual animal.
• When the animals are ill, allopathic veterinary medicinal products including antibiotics may be used where necessary and under strict conditions. This is only allowed when the use of phytotherapeutic, homeopathic and other products is inappropriate.
• The use of immunological veterinary medicines is permitted.

Rules for the food chain

The rules cover all stages of production, preparation and distribution (from primary production to storage, processing, transport, distribution and supply to the final consumer). This means that all organic products in the EU follow strict rules from the farm to the plate.

The specific provisions for processing organic food and feed include:

• the separation of processed organic products in time and space from non-organic ones;
• a minimum organic content of 95% of organic agricultural ingredients and strict conditions for the remaining 5%;
• clear rules on labelling and on which products can and cannot use the organic logo
• specific limits to the substances which can be added to food and feed and a limited list of approved additives and processing aids to be used in organic production.

As we can see above EU organic products focus on the holistic protection of the consumer and the environment and the production of the highest quality organic products that full maintains their taste and nutritional value.

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