Accreditation Committee
The Accreditation Committee, appointed by the IOAS Board, is a balanced stakeholder group which ensures high-level technical decisions on accreditation are taken independently and without undue influence.
The Accreditation Committee reviews applications for new and renewed accreditations, as well as critical non-conformities and their corrective actions. They also oversee scope extensions or reductions, and decisions on suspensions and reinstatements.
This technical committee is appointed to ensure a balance of interests, representation, geography and expertise in conformity assessment.
Boudewijn van Elzakker, Netherlands
Sector representation: Developing World
Bo works for Agro Eco, an independent research, advisory, and development organization. With 30 years of experience in organic agriculture, he has been involved in developing over 100 value chains across the globe. Bo is the author of the Organic Business Guide and is also involved in accrediting certifiers to various voluntary sustainability standards with ASI. Additionally, he is a founder of the Anti-Fraud Initiative and serves as a Director for the Alliance for Organic Integrity.
Dorota Metera, Poland
Sector representation: Conformity Assessment
Dorota has an MSc in horticulture and has spent all her working life committed to organic farming. She is currently the President of the Board and Director of Certification of the certification body Bioekspert Ltd. in Poland. She takes an active role in the development of the organic rules in Europe through her role as member of the IFOAM EU Group since 2008 and for many years as the council member. She worked for the Association of Organic Producers in Poland (Ekoland) between 1989 and 2002 and is currently a member of the Monitoring Committee for Rural Development.
Joyce Ford, USA
Sector representation: Beneficiaries
Joyce has been involved in organic agriculture since 1977 when she first started farming vegetables organically. Since that time, she has undertaken work as an organic inspector, a trainer, been involved in policy development in organic certification and undertaken internal audits of organic certification bodies and is currently chair of the International Organic Inspectors Association (IOIA) Ethics Committee.
Julia Perez, Mexico
Sector representation: Conformity Assessment
Julia has worked for many years as a certification specialist, evaluating records of organic operators based on various international standards of organic certification, and is an organic inspector. Her knowledge of the implementation and evaluation of compliance of different international organic certification regulations covers a wide range of areas including production of organic crops, organic livestock and processing of organic products. Julia has also provided a number of advanced training courses on organic practices, management and control systems.
Katharina Schaus, Germany
Katharina is a sustainable textile expert with years of experience building certification systems, conducting audits, making certification decisions, and offering training and consultancy services to textile producers, traders, retailers and certification bodies. Involved in the initiation and development of the GOTS – Global Organic Textile Standard, and Founder of ‘It fits’, a textile consultancy, Katharina also publishes articles in the Organic Textile Journal and has written a number of reports providing insight and advice on organic textile standards, sustainability, future viability, environmental friendliness and social compatibility.
Sahana C.A, India
Sector representation: Developing world
Sahana holds a Master’s degree in Environmental Science and has conducted extensive research on the impacts of climate change due to Land Use, Land-Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF). She has also developed practical guidelines and formulated a comprehensive policy on non-timber forest products (NTFP). Sahana’s experience as a Lead Assessor in Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) and conducting accreditation assessments on Conformity Assessment Bodies makes her a valued addition to the IOAS Accreditation Committee.
Vitoon Panyakul, Thailand
Sector representation: Developing world
Vitoon Panyakul has been working with the Thai organic movement since 1991. As an organic pioneer, he helped to establish several organisations active in organic agriculture promotion like the Green Net Cooperative (organic and fair trade distributor and exporter), the Earth Net Foundation (non-profit foundation working to support small-scale farmers for organic conversion in Asia region), the Organic Agriculture Certification Thailand (organic certification body active in southeast Asia region), and the Thai Organic Trader Association.