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New to organic certification or looking to become certified and not sure where to start?
You might find these FAQ topics most useful:


Yes, as long as adequate measures are taken to distinguish organic from non-organic, and storage practices do not pose a commingling or contamination risk for organic ingredients. You do not have to have a physical barrier in place, but adequate separation and labeling should be in place to protect the organic product.
Use the Handler OSP Update Guide to ensure you submit all forms. To add a new product that you manufacture to your Organic System Plan (OSP) and organic certificate, send the following to inbox@ccof.org: All labels for the product…
Water and salt are excluded when calculating the organic percentage of a product. Use our helpful H2.0B Product Formulation worksheet to help you calculate the organic percentage of finished products. This worksheet will also help you if some of your…
Yes, restaurants are considered retail food establishments and are excluded from certification, but can identify products on their menus as organic without certification. Restaurants must prevent commingling or contamination of organic product/ingredients with prohibited materials, such as sanitizers, pest control materials, and non-organic ingredients. Additionally, restaurants need to comply…
No, products that restrict organic claims to the ingredient listing only are exempt from the requirements of certification. However, the manufacturer needs to maintain documentation that the organic ingredients identified are organic and certified according to the regulations. Manufacturers should request and maintain on file current copies of organic certificates for each organic ingredient.…
The National List is the list of non-organic materials you are allowed to use as ingredients, additives, or processing aids in your organic products. For processors this includes materials such as yeast, citric acid, baking soda, diatomaceous earth, and others. Only non-organic ingredients and processing aids included on the National List may be used in and on your products. CCOF must approve the…
Products labeled “Made with organic…” may contain up to 30% non-organic ingredients. Non-organic ingredients must either be agricultural or on section 205.605 of the National List. Any nonagricultural ingredient or processing aid that does not appear on…
The National List is the definitive source for allowed materials. However, several agencies and organizations create comprehensive lists of brand name products and ingredients that may be used in organic processing. Among them are the…
This list details the most common situations that require organic processors or handlers to send information or documentation to CCOF, and what type of information you'll need to send. Read through this list and contact your Certification Service Specialist with additional questions. Use the Handler OSP Update Guide to ensure…
Looking for organic ingredients? You can find the products produced and processed by CCOF members in our searchable online Organic Directory. The following resources will help guide you in finding other sources of organic ingredients, growers, and…