What’s the characteristic of a Green product? What kind of certifications a product can call “Green” ?  In order to buy a real and quality Green product, it should have below international certifications accepted worldwide:

ACO - Australian Certified Organic. Australia premier certifier of organic produce. ACO maintains conformance with all leading organic standards internationally for worldwide market access. Look for the ACO Bud logo when buying organic products for your guarantee of organic integrity. ACO is accredited to certify organic operations in Australia, Europe, Japan, USA, Switzerland, and UK and has official recognition by Quebec Qua.
   
AOS - Australian Organic Standard. The Standard which certifies you as Australian certified organic and allows you to use the BUD logo on your product. This Standard is current from 1 March 2006 and took effect on the 1st July 2006.
   
BFA - Biological Farmers of Australia
   

BDIH - BDIH is the Association of German Industries and Trading Firms for pharmaceuticals, health care products, food supplements and personal hygiene products. The Association, located in Mannheim, Germany, has organized over 440 producers and distributors of

  • Cosmetics and Natural Cosmetics
  • Food Supplements
  • Nutritional Foods
  • Over-the-counter Medications
  • Medical Devices

In 1996, working together with leading natural cosmetics producers, the BDIH developed comprehensive guidelines for certified natural cosmetics, keeping in mind the expectations of consumers. On the basis of these guidelines, an independent institute has tested more than 2.000 products for their contents and production methods.
   
 
CWMP - Construction Waste Management Plan (CWMP) that diverts construction debris from landfills through conscientious plans to recycle, salvage, and reuse. For best results, this type of plan should also eliminate packaging of materials when possible and be carefully monitored or audited by the contractor.
   
FSC - Guidance of wood-based materials used in building construction that are supplied from sources that comply with sustainable forestry practices, protecting trees, wildlife habitat, streams and soil. Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial, and economically viable management of the world's forests. FSC-labeled wood products indicate that the wood is harvested from sustainably-managed forests.
   
FTF - Fair Trade Federation. An association of fair trade wholesalers, retailers and producers that adhere to social criteria and environmental principles that foster a more equitable and sustainable system of production and trade.
   
  GOCA - Guaranteed Organic Certification Agency (GOCA) is a privately owned company that prides itself on service and has extensive experience in the production, packing, processing and marketing of organic products.
   
IFOAM - The International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements.
   
ISEAL - The International Social and Environmental Accreditation and Labeling Alliance is an association of leading voluntary international standard-setting and conformity assessment organizations that focus on social and environmental issues.
   
 
OAA - Organic Agriculture Association. Certification Body.
   
OCIA - is one of the world's oldest, largest and most trusted leaders in the organic certification industry. A nonprofit, member-owned, agricultural organization, OCIA is dedicated to providing the highest quality organic certification services and access to global organic markets.
   
OGA - Organic Growers of Australia. Australia first certification service to specifically cater for the needs of the smaller organic producer. Growers certified under this program have the benefit of reduced costs and simplified certification process due to fewer requirements for servicing smaller domestic markets.
   
 
OGS - Organic Guarantee System is designed to a) facilitate the development of organic standards and third-party certification worldwide, and to b) provide an international guarantee of these standards and organic certification. The IFOAM Basic Standards and the Accreditation Criteria are two of the main components of the OGS.
   
 
OMRI - The Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI) is a national nonprofit organization that determines which input products are allowed for use in organic production and processing. OMRI Listed—or approved—products may be used on operations that are certified organic under the USDA National Organic Program.
   
One Percent for the Planet - An organization consisting of businesses that pledges to give at least 1% of their total annual revenues to charities and organizations that help the natural environment.
   
 
Organic Farming - Organic Farming of European Commission.
   
USDA - United States Department of Agriculture. Along with the national organic standards, USDA developed strict labeling rules to help consumers know the exact organic content of the food they buy.  The USDA Organic seal also tells you that a product is at least 95 percent organic or else:
   

“100% organic” - Products labeled as "100 percent organic" must contain (excluding water and salt) only organically produced ingredients.

“Organic” - Must contain at least 95% organic ingredients, not counting added water and salt.
Must not contain added sulfites.
May contain up to 5% of:

  • Non-organically produced agricultural ingredients which are not commercially available in organic form; and/or
  • Other substances allowed by 7 CFR 205.605.

“Made with organic ingredients” - Must contain at least 70% organic ingredients, not counting added water and salt.
Must not contain added sulfites; except that, wine may contain added sulfur dioxide in accordance with 7 CFR 205.605.
May contain up to 30% of:

  • Non-organically produced agricultural ingredients; and/or
  • Other substances, including yeast, allowed by 7 CFR 205.605.
  Zero-VOC - A term used to indicate paint containing no volatile organic compounds (VOC) in paint and finishes – a healthier alternative to conventional paints.
   
ECOCERT is a control and certification organisation accredited by USDA for NOP certification and by NAPP for JAS certification. It works to promote organic products through its control and certification activities in over 80 countries. The ECOCERT groups employ 350 people worldwide.  Its wealth of contact, its experience acquired in the field and the rigorous nature of its controls gives ECOCERT international credibility.
   
China Environmental Labelling System includes type I, type II, and type III, which is managed by the China Environmental Labelling and Product Certification Committee. Purpose of setting up this committee is to reduce the degree of damage to natural environment by the products, and increase the concern of the manufacturer and consumer about environmental protection. Amongst them, type I certification has the longest history, all-round regulations, and highest requirements. For products that can pass the type I environmental labelling certification, it can put this labelling on the packaging to distinguish that it meets all environmental protection requirements from production to recycling, cause no or minimal harm to the ecological environment, and is easy for resources recycling and regeneration.
   
 
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