Does organic produce from the US meet the same requirements as organic produce from the European Union? Are all organic products equal?

Here’s an example of a question you might be asking yourselves, or at least some of you are asking us, so we thought it might be useful to clarify a few points 😉

That’s a good question indeed, especially since, in France, 30% of organic products consumed come from abroad! So it’s not just hops from the US or New Zealand, there are also bananas, avocados, coffee, tea and other nuts… to name just a few examples.

Regarding the organic specifications, there are 3 distinct scenarios:

• Hops are produced within the European Union – meaning the EU – and therefore all producers are subject to the same European organic farming standards. You know, the ones that allow you to put the famous “Euro-leaf” on the labels 😉

• Hops come from abroad with national organic regulations comparable to those of the EU, in which case the specifications are considered equivalent and organic products from these countries are considered organic in the EU ( subject to following the appropriate import procedure ). To be marketed as such, organic products imported into the European Union must comply with the production rules and be subject to the control provisions stipulated by European regulations. The European Commission has established a list of third countries (outside Europe) and control bodies applying production rules and control provisions equivalent to those stipulated by European organic regulations. Imported products must also be covered by a certificate issued by an approved control body in the Member State where the importer is located.

• The hops come from abroad without national organic regulations comparable to those of the EU , in which case the hops should be certified in those countries, then checked upon arrival in Europe.

So perhaps two things to remember as far as we are concerned:

• The specifications are therefore not exactly the same between EU and non-EU countries: these are equivalencies which are validated (or not) by the European Commission;
• To import organic products into the European Union, there is a very specific procedure to follow. If this procedure is not followed, the products are then considered conventional and CANNOT be reclassified as organic. We agree that they may be organic in their DNA, but they will not have the official organic certification.
• Currently at HOPSTORE, you’ll find hops sourced from both within the European Union AND from abroad, from countries whose organic regulations are considered equivalent to our own by the EU. However, we may one day source from elsewhere!

Sources:

• www.terra-net.fr
• https://www.agencebio.org/questions-reponses/produit-bio/