Organic Wines Only with EU Certificate Not Recognized by China
Write | WBO Morris
Translate and Edit | WBO Kiwi
Recently, some of the wines labeled with organic certification of the European Union and the United States were forced to remove off shelves by relevant departments.
According to the official website of Shandong Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau, during the inspection on imported organic products in "3.15" World Consumer Rights Day, some infant formula, infant auxiliary food, wine, cosmetics were involved in the investigation.
It was found that, in the case of wine, chocolate, candy and other products in the market, the "ORGANIC" identified by European Union and American organic certification marks were not recognized as organic in our country. For this reason, the official personnel has dealt with the illegal products according to law.
This is not the first time that the European Union and the US certified organic products have been processed. In the year of 2016, a group of unqualified imported organic wines were detected in Shanghai. These imported French imported wines declared as organic products with the foreign label printed with the word "AGRICULTURE BIOLOGIQUE" and the foreign organic logo design, but the Chinese organic product certification has not been obtained. The importer cannot provide any certification of organic certification marks and product identification materials.
The organic certification of China and the European Union and the United States has not been recognized by each other. Therefore, after the entry of organic wine from the EU and the United States into the Chinese market, the label is not allowed to write the "organic" words. But WBO still finds that a few wines can legally write the logo of organic certification in Europe and the US. How did they do it?
According to the third chapter of China's "Administrative Measure on Organic Product Certification", the organic product is recognized only when the certification system which exports organic products to China is equivalent to the Chinese organic product certification system. Such organic products exported to China by the country or region shall be managed according to the relevant regulations.
Through WBO’s observation, China has only signed the arrangement with New Zealand primary industry department on the mutual recognition of organic product certification. In other words, apart from New Zealand wine, the European Union, the United States, Australia, Chile, will not be recognized by China with the organic standard of these countries, all in accordance with the Measure.
The wine is brought back directly from abroad, this will be investigated due to our regulation
WBO still sees a few wine labels on the market to mark the European Union's organic certification, including one of the largest organic wine producers in Bordeaux, the BORDEAUX VINEAM GROUP, and China's largest organic wine producer,Grand Dragon.
Hou Quan, the head of BORDEAUX VINEAM GROUP in China, said that the EU certified organic wine would be asked to remove or cover the logo in China because of the lack of mutual recognition of organic certification in China and Europe. Unless the product is approved by China's organic certification at the same time, the relevant departments will allow the organic certification mark of China and EU at the same time.
"There are many institutions in China currently engaging in organic certification in China. In order to obtain organic certification in China, every August, we will invite staff of the certification authority to go to our French wineries before the picking season. In accordance with the Chinese organic certification standards, the staff will sample and test the soil, grape, wine and other related articles, and if we pass in the test, the certification will be issued in the following year”, Hou added, “But each year, the cost of certification and travel fee needs 100,000RMB.”
A staff member of the organic food certification agency suggested, enterprises should have domestic organic certification first then they can simultaneously highlight the EU and American organic, otherwise it would be thought to be misleading.