§ Lord Brabazon of Taraasked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the remarks by the Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 9 October (H.L. Deb., col. 9), whether imported food labelled as organic and not coming from a European Union country, or from one of the six countries approved by the European Union for organic food production standards, has to fulfil any qualifications or any form of verification to be allowed to be so labelled in the United Kingdom. [HL4173]
§ The Minister of State, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (Baroness Hayman)Regulation (EEC) 2092/91 provides that, in the case of products from such countries, importers may make an application to the competent authority in the member state concerned, providing evidence (standards, control manuals etc) to show that standards and control measures equivalent to those set out in the regulation have been applied in the country of origin. Products can only be imported for sale as organic if an authorisation has been granted. The UK Register of Organic Food Standards (UKROFS) undertakes this function in the UK.