A guide to buying Australian and internationally certified organic produce

Wanting to shop more sustainably? Great news! Buying certified organic food, fibre and cosmetic produce in Australia is easy!

The assurance system of certified organics means that certified organic growers, manufacturers, input suppliers, and retailers must meet the National Standard in order to ensure traceability along the entire organic supply chain from paddock to plate.

Organic product categories include and are not limited to: food, processed foods, beauty and skincare, clothing, linen, baby and child care, pet, cleaning and gardening products.

The advantages of buying organic products are significant. Here are just a few of the benefits:

  • Organic produce contains fewer pesticides
  • Organic farming tends to be better for the environment
  • Organic farming builds healthier soils
  • Certified organic means GMO free

Australia has numerous trading arrangements with other countries making the range and source of Certified Organic produce sold in Australia quite extensive.

Buying packaged organic products

Product labelling is what differentiates certified organic consumer products. All certified organic products are traceable back to the producer/processor.

The operator’s certification number written in conjunction with the certified organic label within the product label can be looked up on the website of the certifying organisation such as NASAA Certified Organic (NCO); to determine if the product is certified and who produced the product.

The spring leaf, NASAA Organic label is used by NCO operators to provide the verification that the product has been produced using nationally and internationally-recognised organic principles and production methods. At present there are three NASAA Labels in use:

Original spring leaf NASAA Organic label
Phasing out by early 2021

New look spring leaf NASAA Organic label 
Available from 2019

Other Australian accredited Certified Organic Labels

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