SGS has awarded Organic Certification to the Whole Wheat Atta introduced by Amul, a cooperative brand managed by the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF). This certificate demonstrates compliance with the organic production requirements and supports the authenticity of the organic claim for the agricultural products marketed by GCMMF, under the brand name Amul. In addition to the certification awarded to GCMMF, SGS has also certified Kaira District Milk Producers Union Limited which is the processing plant of Amul.
Organic certification is a process certification involving a set of production standards for growing, storage, processing, packaging, and shipping of organic products. The certification involves independent assessment of the processes, premises as well as production methods to ensure regulatory compliance with the organic certification standards.
An Organic certification enhances the brand value and improves the marketability of organic products by responding to the strong consumer demand for genuine, organically produced foods. In addition to improving saleability and providing entry to new niches in the domestic markets, the certification also facilitates export of unprocessed products to EU & Switzerland. A fast and efficient programme, this certification is an assurance of the organic integrity of products and use of sustainable practices that safeguard the environment by protecting natural resources and biodiversity.
Organic certification standards include:
- Avoidance of synthetic chemical inputs (e.g., fertiliser, pesticides, antibiotics, food additives), irradiation, and the use of sewage sludge.
- Avoidance of genetically modified seed.
- Use of farmland that has been free from prohibited chemical inputs for several years (often three or more).
- Audit Trail – maintaining a detailed written record of production and sales.
- Strict and controlled physical separation of organic products from non-certified products.
- Undergoing periodic on-site inspections.
Jayen Mehta, COO, GCMMF (Amul) expressed his elation about the association with SGS for Organic certification of GCMMF. He appreciated the disciplined approach that SGS followed while executing various stages of certification process at GCMMF.
“Organic certification is key to protect the environment, produce residue-free and safe food products. It unequivocally demonstrates the authenticity of ‘organic’ product claims and builds customer trust towards the brand,” said Nilesh Jadhav, Director – Knowledge Business.
This achievement was marked by a ‘Certification Handover Ceremony’, which was attended by the senior management teams from both organisations. Apart from Jayen, the team from GCMMF included – Dr. R.S Sodhi – Managing Director, Jayen Mehta – Chief Operating Officer, Manoranjan Pani – Chief General Manager, Nimit Doshi – Head of Emerging Sales Channels and Sameer Saxena – Head of Quality Assurance. Apart from Nilesh, SGS was represented by Arup Jana – Head of Certification Sales.
SGS offers world-leading certification services to enable organisations to demonstrate compliance of their products, processes, systems or services with national and international regulations and standards. Their highly qualified auditors work in a vast range of sectors, from forestry to pharmaceuticals, to ensure that the client services, products and processes are scrutinised and deliver optimum performance, quality and safety.
GCMMF is India’s largest food products organization with annual sales turnover of Rs 46,427 crores during last financial year. It markets a wide range of milk and milk products, frozen foods, bakery items and many other products under the brand name ‘Amul’. Currently, the member unions of GCMMF procure an average 240 lakhs litres of milk every day from 36 lakhs milk producers in 18,562 villages of Gujarat state.
