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Overview of the Certification Process

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When an operation wants to become certified organic, they must contact an organic certifier.  Each certifier has their own processes, applications and fee schedule associated with this certification.  The certifier will provide each applicant with the required forms that need to be completed.  The operation will then complete the required documentation and begin to establish their Organic System Plan (OSP).  The OSP is a detailed description of the practices and procedures that will be used by the operation to produce organic goods.  Essentially, the OSP describes how and in what ways the operation’s practices will adhere to the National Organic Program and maintain organic integrity of their products. 

Click here for a list of all Accredited Certifiers, both internationally and domestically.

While Quick Organics is not an accredited certifier, our program can assist you in establishing your OSP and maintaining your records throughout the year.  Our self-help guides and dedicated team are here to assist you!  Need additional help?  Contact us or visit the “Add-on’s to the Program” page for additional resources and services to help you achieve organic compliance!

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The operation will submit their proposed OSP, documentation and associated fees to the certifier.  Upon receipt, the certifier will begin to review the OSP and verify that the application is complete and that upon initial review, the OSP complies with regulations. If the application does not contain enough information or is not in compliance, the certifier may ask for additional information or may ask the operation to change practices in their proposed OSP in order to be in compliance.  Once the certifier has reviewed the application and determined initial compliance, they will schedule an onsite inspection of the operation. 

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During the onsite inspection, the inspector will review all production sites and records for both the current year and previous years.

This inspection allows the onsite certifier to:

• Evaluate the implementation of the OSP and determines if it complies with regulations;
• Verify that the written OSP accurately reflects the operation’s activities;
• Visually inspect to ensure that no prohibited substances are used or applied

The Quick Organics’ program will assist you in showing the inspector all of your records in a comprehensive way. Our cloud-based system will allow you to access your records anywhere, anytime. It also gives you access to all of your previous years’ records at the touch of a button.  Making the onsite inspection organized and less time consuming.

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After the inspection, the inspector reports to the operation’s certifying agency and provides all their findings during the onsite visit. These findings will include – observation of production facilities, observation of adherence to the operation’s OSP, and any additional information gathered from records during the visit.

If the certifier determines that the operation’s OSP is compliant, then an organic certificate will be issued.  The organic certificate is current for 1-year following the date issued or better known as the anniversary date.  The certifier may also issue additional provisions associated with the current certificate.  These provisions may include, but not limited to – instructions for transitional acreage, requests to the OSP to strengthen the operation’s compliance, and other requests related to practices or recordkeeping.

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Each producer must provide an annual update of their OSP to their certifying agent.  The update will include – any proposed changes to the practices and procedures, historical production records for the previous years, and plans for the current year’s operation.  The certifying agent reviews the annual update for completeness and verifies that the practices adhere to the USDA regulations.  This will then repeat the process annually back to Step 2 in the Certification Process.

Quick Organics software program will help you maintain your organic status for previous years and help you tailor operational decisions for the upcoming year.  The ease and convenience of our system will help you provide all your historical data with a click of a button. As part of the compliance process, each operation must keep their records for a minimum 5 years. Your access to our cloud-based system also helps ensure that your records are kept indefinitely.

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