BioGro assists organic exporters — Exporter Magazine
BioGro is New Zealand’s leading organic certification agency holding eight internationally recognised accreditations supporting New Zealand’s export growth (1). BioGro is the leading certifier for a number of organic industries including kiwifruit and viticulture where most of the produce is exported.
Organics is growing globally with nearly 45% of Americans saying they would buy organic produce if they could afford it and it was more accessible (2).
Organics Aotearoa NZ reported that in 2012, between $215-$225 million dollars came from organic exports – a 25% increase since 2009 (3).The international retail organic market is an emerging trend and will only continue to grow over the next few years.
This is a huge opportunity for New Zealand and BioGro is committed to helping New Zealand organic producers expand to meet this growing demand.
The BioGro logo provides New Zealanders who want to purchase organic produce with the confidence that what they are buying is genuinely organic.
The BioGro logo has been around for over 30 years and has become synonymous with certified organics.
BioGro is the most well-known and leading certification body in New Zealand. The logo appears on any product or produce that the organisation certifies and deems to be authentic.
In New Zealand there is no current legislation surrounding the word ‘organic’ – anybody can label a product as organic or natural as long as they meet fair-trade requirements. BioGro doesn’t think this is good enough.
BioGro was founded in 1983 stemming from the lack of protection around the word ‘organic’ in order to provide organic certification to producers and protect consumers. In doing so, BioGro certification and the logo assists consumers in being able to identify genuine organic produce.
The BioGro logo is on the majority of organic products seen on the shelves today and many well-known brands.
All certified members carry the BioGro logo on their products, giving consumers confidence that the organics they buy are truly free from GMO, pesticides, animal testing and are ‘good for you’ in every sense of the word.
BioGro has certified nearly 700 producers throughout New Zealand and the Pacific to date.
http://www.biogro.co.nz/
1 BioGro 2013/14 Annual Report: http://www.biogro.co.nz/annual-report
2 ‘US Organic Food Market to Grow 14% from 2013-2018:’ http://www.foodnavigator-usa.com/Markets/US-organic-food-market-to-grow-14-from-2013-18
3 Organics Aotearoa New Zealand NZ Organic Market Report 2012: http://www.oanz.org/casestudies/OANZ-full%20report%202012.pdf
