Standards innovation: our work
Find out about our work around organic standards and how you can take part in consultations.
- How do we set standards?
- Why do we consult?
- Our current consultations and how to take part.
- Our ongoing work.
- Our past work.
How do we set standards?
We don’t just make them up! Soil Association standards are set and overseen by independent expert Standards Board.
The governance process we follow to set our standards is open, transparent and robust. We aim for our standards to be stretching and ambitious, yet achievable.
Find out more about the wider process of how we set our standards.
Why do we consult?
We run in-depth, far-reaching and targeted public consultations as part of the standard-setting process, in line with industry best practice set out by ISEAL. We want to hear feedback from the full breadth of our stakeholders. We take all feedback into account before introducing or amending our Soil Association standards.
Our current consultations and how to take part
1. Permitted Inputs Consultation for Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland has different organic rules from the rest of the United Kingdom (UK). The new EU organic regulation was adopted in Northern Ireland following the UK’s exit from the European Union (EU).
There is new regulation in the EU. This adds several new permitted inputs for organic feed and crop production and for organic food and drink. We have reviewed all new inputs and are consulting on including these in the Soil Association standards.
For more details, please read the supporting technical document.
We want to hear from stakeholders throughout the UK. Your feedback will inform our future standards development in Great Britain. They will also inform our input to Defra on the development of the new organic regulation for Great Britain next year.
The consultation is open for 60 days and will close on 12 January 2025.
Take part in our consultation.
2. Consultation on use of Organic meat stamps in abattoirs.
The use of organic meat stamps is not a requirement of the Great Britain or Northern Ireland organic regulations. The only condition is that the operator must use ink colours in line with regulation.
Soil Association (SA) is proposing to simplify the process for abattoir operators. You no longer need to use an SA symbol meat stamp on organic carcasses as a higher SA standard.
The use of meat stamps was intended to provide a clear and easy method of identifying and tracing organic carcasses from abattoirs, through processing and storage operations. However, there are several other measures already in place which safeguard organic integrity. These include dedicated processing times and storage, cleaning of equipment, ear tags and ID numbers.
For more details, please read our context summary.
The consultation is open for 60 days and will close on 12 January 2025.
Take part in our consultation.
3. Consultation on the protection of critically endangered species.
Protecting biodiversity is a central principle of organic food production.
We recognise that sustainable wild harvesting can have a positive impact. It helps to protect biodiversity by supporting rural livelihoods and encouraging conservation. If not sourced carefully, trade in wild harvested species can harmful, such as endangering vulnerable species.
We want to introduce a requirement to help safeguard critically endangered species within our food and drink standards. This will align with requirements in our farming standards.
Read our context summary to find out more.
The consultation is open for 60 days and will close on 12 January 2025.
Take part in our consultation.
