We can only certify businesses that are located in the Netherlands. This means a registration at the Dutch Chamber of Commerce is required. You can apply for a certification at Skal by sending your filled out registration form to bereiding@skal.nl We will assess your form and send you a confirmation when your registration is complete.
Anyone who prepares, stores and places organic products on the market (including wholesalers, importers and traders) must be licensed by a recognised certification body and hold a valid organic certificate. Companies that sell finished packed products to the end consumer are exempt e.g. retailers. Retailers with their own organic range have to be certified.
You will need tot verify that your suppliers hold organic certification by checking that an in date certificate is available, which covers the type of product they are selling to you. A supplier must not be used if they are unable to provide the evidence that their own operation is certified organic (note exemption for retailers). Your supplier is the company that invoices you for the goods.
If your registration is complete you receive a conformation with a link to the informationi you need to get ready for your initial inspection. Please tell us when you are ready bereiding@skal.nl
What do you need?
Risk Analysis
A risk analysis for organic products relating to the risk of contamination between non-organic and organic ingredients/products (and not on food safety items). You have to identify the possible risks. You can use the available example and adapt it to your own process. You will have to use your risk analysis as a guideline for annual internal audits.
Procedure goods received
As a recipient of organic goods, you must inspect all organic products/ingredients on the following points:
• delivery date
• good or ingredient received
• amount (weight or quantity)
• delivery note or invoice number
• supplier (located in)
• traceability number
• organic status checked
• organic indication on packaging
• packaging sealed (if applicable)
You can use two methods for registration:
• You register your incoming goods on a form / digital system.
• You sign off the delivery documents. If this is the method of your choice this you have to describe this in a procedure. The procedure must mention what you check.
In your administration your have to register and save all the delivery information such as delivery notes, invoices, CMR’s etc.
You will have to notify Skal if you find irregularities or if you have doubts about the organic status of the goods received.
Separating non-organic and organic production/storage
For the production of organic food, it is important to prevent mixing organic ingredients with non-organic ingredients. This means that the preparation must always be performed separately. You can produce the organic products at a different time, on a different machine or in a separate production area.
If you produce both organic and non-organic products on the same machine, you have to prevent contamination. Your procedure must comply with the following:
• compulsory action between the non-organic and organic production (e.g. empty operation or cleaning).
• compulsory check the results of this action before the start of the organic production.
• compulsory registration that this procedure is carried out.
You must store the products in such a way that you exclude mixing or exchanging organic with non-organic products. How you store them depends on the packaging:
• For packaged products, you can store the organic and non-organic products in a joint warehouse. However, make sure you have good separation, particularly between ingredients that resemble each other and already opened packaging.
• For bulk products, you must ensure that a silo, hangar, etc. is clean and empty before you store organic products in them. You must inspect this and register the results.
Besides separate storage, identification of organic products is important. This can be done by using pallet labels.
Traceability
Your products have to be traceable at all times. You record in a procedure how you have organised traceability, for example on batch number, best by date or delivery date. With tracking, it is important that you know for each ingredient exactly when, in which quantity and in which products it has been used. Based on your administration, you must calculate a mass balance/quadratic equation at least once a year of an ingredient of your choice. In a certain period counted stock and production have to correspond.
You must perform the following calculation: counted start stock ingredients + received ingredient - used in production process (- residual flows) ≥ counted end stock. You must be able to defend the quadratic equation with documents, for example invoices, production sheets, stock counts, delivery notes, sales invoices, etc.
Complaint registration
Despite all the care you take, you may receive a complaint about one of your organic products. You must then handle and register these complaints. In your registration, you must include the following details:
• all complaints about the organic products.
• the measures you take to resolve the complaints.
• the measures you take in response to the complaints to prevent such complaints in the future.
Product certification If you are a producer of trader you need to get your product approved. You can submit your application if you log on to our website after your registration. Getting your product approved
Organic certificates of your suppliers
You will need tot verify that your suppliers hold organic certification by checking that an in date certificate is available, which covers the type of product they are selling to you. A supplier must not be used if they are unable to provide the evidence that their own operation is certified organic (note exemption for retailers).
Your supplier is the company that invoices you for the goods.