Aims :

This policy establishes minimum requirements for imported organic products.

Background :

As a response to globalisation and increasingly complex and anonymous supply chains, certification of imported organic products becomes evident.

Normative framework :

NPOP

Appendix 10

The documents related to the import transaction should be audited for trace back of the products to the origin. The trace back checks would cover nature and quantity of the product concerned as well as transportation and distribution arrangements.

Terms :

Imported Organic Products: To check for the organic certificate issued from the exporter company, storage facilities, labelling and the persons responsible in procuring of the imported products.

Traceability: Possibility to identify the origin of a product or a product-batch, the processes and steps it has undergone, and the persons responsible for each step.

Policy :

As a minimum, ADITI will implement the above-mentioned requirement: at the importers premises. The previous and the following handler of a product or product-lot must be identifiable. To safeguard this, operators must implement procedures like physical separation, labelling, and detailed records.

Therefore, as a general policy, we establish that, in its own interest, any organic product imported should try to achieve the highest possible level of transparency all through its travel.

In all high-risk situations, ADITI requires organic operators to keep reference samples. “High-risk” is defined in this context as frequent findings of pesticide or GMO residues in the respective product in the respective region.

• Reference samples should be kept for at least one year after shelf life of product or re-evalua-tion date or for one year after distribution is complete, whichever is longer.
• Sample size should be twice the amount required to perform specification testing.
• Sample should be identified with product name, lot number and sampling date.

For imported organic product(s), ADITI requires documents on origin, invoices, status, certificates etc. If it is procured from informal sources the same should be recorded in the inward records. All the operations during importing of the organic products should be recorded.

Access to this policy :

• This policy is available to all interested public
• It must be handed out to all ADITI certification and inspection personnel
• It must be handed out to all post-harvest handlers interested in certification.