The scheme owner is the European Commission, where the administration of the EU Organic Regulation is assigned to the Organic Unit of the Directorate General Agriculture (DG AGRI), working with the European Parliament and Member State authorities. Regulation (EU) 2018/848 and its secondary acts, as amended by the EU Commission from time to time, provide the framework of rules for the production, processing and marketing of organic products in the EU, including imports.
While Regulation (EU) 2018/848 replaced Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 in January 2022, a transitional period for third countries ended on December 31, 2024. Therefore, from January 1, 2025, control bodies (CBs) operating outside the EU (regardless of their location) must be recognized by the European Commission under Regulation (EU) 2018/848 for specific product scopes and third countries. Recognized CBs are listed in the Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/1378, subject to updates.
To obtain recognition, CBs in third countries must be accredited to ISO/IEC 17065 by [a national accreditation body in the EU or] an accreditation body operating under the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) multilateral recognition arrangement (MLA), like the IOAS. [IOAS has a legacy spanning the entire history of EU organic regulations, from EEC 2092/91 to EU 2018/848, having accredited tens of EU-recognized control bodies worldwide.]
Detailed information on the EU organic regulations can be found on the EU Commission website. For more information, refer to the IOAS European Recognition Operating Manual.