Ecological Food Certificate

Ecological food is foodstuff in which agricultural products are grown without the use of any additives and chemical ingredients, and in the same way they are delivered directly to the consumer by all natural means. Nowadays, ecological (organic) foods are inspected quite frequently and consumers are given ecological (organic) product certificates according to certain conditions. Ecological products do not contain harmful substances for human health and nature. In addition, these products are easy to recycle and do not pollute the environment.

Importance of Ecological Food Use

Unfortunately, the agricultural sector is far from being a sector where natural nutrients are produced as in previous years. The use of chemicals, fertilizers and seeds, and the use of many additives for food preservation reduce the confidence in agricultural products. These situations in agricultural foods cause harm to ecological life. The methods used to increase the production of food are mostly based on environmentally harmful chemicals and unnatural methods. In addition, many food packaging, which is not recycled, is extremely harmful to the environment as it remains undissolved in nature for many years. On the other hand, there has been a tremendous increase in recent years, especially in the area of ​​processed food. However, the processed food industry, which extends the expiry date of the products, causes it to be stored for a longer period of time; It causes negative consequences such as the deterioration of the organic structure of foods and the excessive decrease of nutritional values. Today, some conscious circles make various demands against these situations, create public opinion and work to make various environmental and food arrangements. In order to encourage people to consume natural food products and raise the awareness of the producer on this issue, various certification programs are organized in accordance with the laws.

What is the Ecological Food Standard?

In recent years, many legal regulations have been made by the state on ecological food. In addition, certain standards and related certification programs have been initiated to encourage awareness on ecological food. These certification programs enable people to become more aware of organic foods, as well as to consume products grown naturally. Ecological food standard; using all natural seed and natural methods in agriculture and animal husbandry encourages not to use chemical and additive products contrary to the laws of nature in any of the stages of production, processing, storage, sale and consumption. Natural fattening methods are used in animal husbandry within the framework of these certificates. For breeding animals, it is ensured that healthy animal generations are increased by being more careful. Instead of artificial feed consumption, the method of traveling grazing and natural feed consumption are encouraged. On the other hand, in the field of agriculture, the number of organic seeds that are not genetically intact is tried to be increased. In order to make the soil fertile, the use of natural fertilizer instead of chemical fertilizer is encouraged and also the soil is rested with fallow release method and its productivity is increased. With these methods, it is aimed to increase biological diversity in the agriculture and animal husbandry sector, to protect healthy products and to transfer them from generation to generation.

Necessity of Ecological Food Standard

In recent years, the demand for organic products has been increasing in our country and in the world and as a result of this, important activities are carried out for the spread of ecological foods. Organizations wishing to obtain an ecological food standard certificate are subject to various audits by the issuing organizations. Ecological food certificate is given to the relevant institution where production is observed as a result of the examinations carried out under appropriate conditions. Every year, periodical checks are performed by the company issuing this certificate. The company continues to use the certificate during the validity period. In order to create a sensitive food and environmental awareness, it is of great importance that the ecological food certificate, which is aimed at protecting the rights of producers and consumers, becomes widespread.

In order to protect the ecological system, the international organic food certificate application, first adopted in the EU in 1992, is implemented almost everywhere in the world, including our country. With this certificate, it is aimed to restore the eco system which is deteriorated to normal. In eco label applications applied in many sectors, especially in food products, no chemical components that harm the eco system are used in the formulas of the products. All production processes of the products are controlled by these standards.

Ecological food certification is given by independent and impartial certification firms with international authority. This certificate aims to produce food products in a way that does not harm natural resources without using chemical fertilizers and pesticides. It is very important that agricultural areas are selected in a way that will not harm or damage natural resources. Seeds, seedlings and seedlings should also be hormone-free. The delivery of many food products to consumers in a packaged manner is within the standards. Ecological food certificate is environmental label application. All criteria are defined in detail in ISO 1992 standards adopted in 14000.

What is Ecological Food Certificate?

It is an accepted standard for the production of food products in a sustainable and renewable manner and at the same time for the protection of the ecosystem. Ecological food certificates are issued to food products produced within the framework of the specified standards.

The concept of sustainability has become increasingly used, especially in food products. The main purpose of sustainable food production is to ensure that natural resources are not damaged and transferred to future generations. Sustainability, which includes social, economic and ecological concepts in general, continues to be a very important element in agriculture. In this context, organic production, which is a healthier and harmless production method, has been given importance. Ecological food certification is also applied for this purpose.

The rapid deterioration of the ecological balance has been proved by various scientific studies. Particularly industrialization, greenhouse gases, wastes discharged to the environment and many other reasons have caused the ecological balance to deteriorate. In particular, waste management, biodiversity, proper use of natural resources and environmental laws are the international measures taken against this destruction. Perhaps the most important of these measures is ecological certification practices. The ecological food certificate applied to agricultural and food products protects both human health and the ecosystem.

Various harmful products are used in the production of agricultural and food products regardless of human health and ecological balance. In order to prevent this, encouraging the consumer to organic products and leaving a cleaner environment to future generations, ecological food certificate applications are being implemented. These practices are carried out by the certification companies authorized by international standards. In our country, Ekomark is the most reliable one among the certificate companies.

How to Obtain an Ecological Food Certificate

There are certain criteria for obtaining an ecological food certificate, known as an environmental label. Within the framework of these criteria, the producer or farmer has to produce in accordance with international standards. It is possible to apply to the relevant certification company for the food products it produces.

As a result of the application and preliminary evaluation, an ecological food certificate agreement will be signed between the two parties. The legal process will be started with the contract. It is the responsibility of the manufacturer to supply the sample product and deliver it to the certification company. Ecological food certificate will be given for the food products that are found suitable as a result of the test and analysis of the sample product and other production processes. With this certificate, products will be sold in the organic and ecological food market. This certificate which is applied according to ISO 14000 standards is very important for a healthy life.