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Organics - Exporting

Operators and exporters

This page is for organic operators and exporters operating under the official organic assurance programme (OOAP).

Read more about the OOAP in the link below.

Exporting organics

Follow NZFSA organic standard OP3

Organic operators are the people responsible for day–to-day management of production, handling and export of organic products.

Exporters are considered a type of operator under the official organic assurance programme (OOAP), and must meet the same requirements.

These requirements are outlined in NZFSA organic standard OP3. It contains registration and performance measurement criteria, and the technical rules for organic production.

NZFSA organic standard OP3

Register as an organic operator with your TPA

If you produce or export organic products under the official organic assurance programme (OOAP), you must be registered with an independent third party agency (TPA) which is recognised by NZFSA. Select your third party agency from the register on the NZFSA website.

Organics third party agency register

Register as an organic exporter with NZFSA

If you export organic products under the official organic assurance programme (OOAP), you must also register as an organic exporter with NZFSA. This allows you to export your products under the agreement between NZFSA and the country you are exporting to.

Complete the registration application form below and return it to NZFSA with the annual registration fee. Fees are stated on the application form.

Organic exporter registration - OP1 application form

Once you are registered, your details will be published in a list of registered organic exporters on the NZFSA website.

List of registered organic exporters

Registration period

Your registration will last for a year, from the date you first register.

You will need to renew your registration by that date the following year. If you do not re-register, but continue to export organic products, you may be in breach of the NZFSA official organic assurance programme.

Renewal is your responsibility. NZFSA will endeavour to send you a reminder letter before your registration expires. However, non-receipt of a reminder letter cannot be used to excuse failure to renew a registration.

Organic management plans (OMPs)

Operators and exporters must have an organic management plan (OMP) that meets NZFSA organic standard OP3 and any export requirements specific to the countries they are exporting to. The OMP covers the day-to-day management of production, harvesting, processing, packing, storage, transport and export of organic products.

Your third party agency (TPA) evaluates your organic management plan. Your TPA also visits and verifies your records regularly to confirm that your organic management plan continues to meet NZFSA organic standard OP3 and market-specific export requirements. Frequency of verification is based on demonstrated performance.

For more about verification frequency, see Appendix 1 of NZFSA organic standard OP3.

NZFSA organic standard OP3

Operators must report regularly on their activities, including any non-compliance, to their third party agency. Non-compliance is any failure to comply with the official organic assurance programme (OOAP).

In practical terms this means any failure to meet the requirements of your organics management plan or export requirements specific to the countries you are exporting to.

If you do not rectify a non-compliance, you can lose your organic exporter registration. This means you cannot export under the official organic assurance programme.

Applying for an export certificate

Exporters requesting a certificate under the official organic assurance programme must be able to demonstrate that their products are organic. Complete the application form below. The information you supply is used to check that your consignment is eligible for a certificate under the OOAP.

The link below contains the application form and guidelines for completing it.

Export certificate application form

Related links

• Guide to the New Zealand Food Safety Authority official organic assurance programme

• Third party agencies

• Market-specific export requirements for organics

Contact

organics@nzfsa.govt.nz

Updated 11 August 2009