Detailed Explanation of the Green Food Label Certification Process and Rules
Green food refers to safe, high-quality edible agricultural products and related products that come from an excellent ecological environment, are produced according to green food standards, implement full-process quality control, and have obtained the right to use the green food label. Green food certification is the certification of green, pollution-free, usable food in accordance with the "Green Food Label Management Law". So what are the rules and process for green food label certification? Let's take a look together.
1. Certification Application
1. The applicant obtains the "Green Food Label Use Application Form", "Enterprise and Production Situation Survey Form" and relevant materials from the China Green Food Development Center (hereinafter referred to as the Center) and the Green Food Office or Green Food Development Center of the province (autonomous region, municipality directly under the Central Government) where it is located (hereinafter referred to as the Provincial Green Office), or downloads them from the Center's website.
2. The applicant fills out and submits to the Provincial Green Office where it is located the "Green Food Label Use Application Form", "Enterprise and Production Situation Survey Form" and the following materials:
A declaration guaranteeing implementation of green food standards and specifications; production operating procedures (planting procedures, breeding procedures, processing procedures); the company's quality control system for the "base + farmers" model (including contracts, base maps, base and farmer lists, management systems); product execution standards; the text of the registered product trademark (photocopy); the enterprise business license (photocopy); the enterprise quality management manual; other materials required to be provided (if system certification has been obtained, attach a photocopy of the certificate).
2. Acceptance and Document Review
1. After receiving the above application materials, the Provincial Green Office shall register and number them, complete the review of the application certification materials within 5 working days, and issue a "Document Review Opinion Notice" to the applicant, while copying it to the Center's Certification Division.
2. If the application certification materials are incomplete, the applicant shall be required to submit supplementary materials within 10 working days after receiving the "Document Review Opinion Notice".
3. If the application certification materials are unqualified, the applicant shall be notified that its application will no longer be accepted in the current growth cycle.
4. If the application certification materials are qualified, Article 3 shall be implemented.
3. On-site Inspection and Product Sampling
1. The Provincial Green Office shall specify the on-site inspection plan in the "Document Review Opinion Notice", and after the plan is confirmed by the applicant, assign 2 or more inspectors to conduct the on-site inspection.
2. The inspectors shall conduct item-by-item inspections according to the relevant items specified in the "Green Food Inspector Work Manual" (trial) and the "Technical Specifications for Investigation of the Current Status of Green Food Production Area Environmental Quality" (trial). Each inspector shall separately fill out the on-site inspection form and inspection opinions. The on-site inspection and the investigation of the current status of environmental quality shall be completed within 5 working days, and within 5 working days after completion, the on-site inspection assessment report, environmental quality status investigation report and relevant investigation materials shall be submitted to the Provincial Green Office.
3. If the on-site inspection is qualified, product sampling may be arranged. If the applicant has provided a product quality testing report issued by a designated green food product monitoring institution within the past year, and it is confirmed by the inspector to meet the green food product testing items and quality requirements, product sampling testing shall be waived.
4. If the on-site inspection is qualified and sampling testing is required, product sampling shall be arranged:
(1) If suitable products for sampling can be obtained at the time, the inspector shall conduct product sampling according to the "Technical Specifications for Green Food Product Sampling" and fill out the "Green Food Product Sampling Form", while copying the sampling form to the Center's Certification Division. Special products (such as animal products, etc.) shall be otherwise specified.
(2) If there are no suitable products for sampling at the time, the inspector and the applicant shall determine the sampling plan on the spot and copy the sampling plan to the Center's Certification Division.
(3) The applicant shall send the samples, product execution standards, "Green Food Product Sampling Form" and testing fees to the designated green food product monitoring institution.
(4) If the on-site inspection is unqualified, product sampling shall not be arranged.
4. Environmental Monitoring
1. The investigation of the current status of green food production area environmental quality shall be completed simultaneously by the inspector during the on-site inspection.
2. If it is confirmed through investigation that the production area environmental quality meets the exemption conditions specified in the "Technical Specifications for Investigation of the Current Status of Green Food Production Area Environmental Quality", environmental monitoring shall be exempted.
3. According to the relevant provisions of the "Technical Specifications for Investigation of the Current Status of Green Food Production Area Environmental Quality", if it is confirmed through investigation that environmental monitoring is necessary, the Provincial Green Office shall, within 2 working days after receiving the investigation report, notify the designated green food environmental monitoring institution in writing to conduct environmental monitoring, while copying the notice to the Center's Certification Division.
4. After receiving the notice, the designated environmental monitoring institution shall issue an environmental monitoring report within 40 working days and submit it directly to the Center's Certification Division together with the completed "Green Food Environmental Monitoring Situation Form", while copying it to the Provincial Green Office.
5. Product Testing
After receiving the samples, product execution standards, "Green Food Product Sampling Form" and testing fees, the designated green food product monitoring institution shall complete the testing work within 20 working days and issue a product testing report, which shall be submitted to the Center's Certification Division together with the completed "Green Food Product Testing Situation Form", while copying it to the Provincial Green Office.
6. Certification Review
1. After receiving the inspector's on-site inspection assessment report and environmental quality status investigation report, the Provincial Green Office shall sign the review opinions within 3 working days and submit the certification application materials, the inspector's on-site inspection assessment report, the environmental quality status investigation report and the "Provincial Green Office Green Food Certification Situation Form" and other materials to the Center's Certification Division.
2. After receiving the materials submitted by the Provincial Green Office, the environmental monitoring report, the product testing report and the "Application for Green Food Certification Basic Situation Survey Form" directly sent by the applicant, the Center's Certification Division shall register and number them, and within 2 working days after confirming receipt of the last material, issue a notice of acceptance, notify the applicant in writing, and copy it to the Provincial Green Office.
3. The Center's Certification Division shall organize reviewers and relevant experts to review the above materials and make a review conclusion within 20 working days.
4. If the review conclusion is "questionable, on-site inspection required", the Center's Certification Division shall complete the on-site inspection plan within 2 working days, notify the applicant in writing, and copy it to the Provincial Green Office. After confirmation by the applicant, inspectors shall be assigned within 5 working days to conduct another on-site inspection.
5. If the review conclusion is "materials incomplete or supplementary explanation required", the Center's Certification Division shall send a "Green Food Certification Review Notice" to the applicant, while copying it to the Provincial Green Office. The applicant shall submit supplementary materials to the Center's Certification Division within 20 working days, and copy them to the Provincial Green Office.
6. If the review conclusion is "qualified" or "unqualified", the Center's Certification Division shall submit the certification materials and certification review opinions to the Green Food Evaluation Committee.
7. Certification Evaluation
1. After receiving the certification materials and the review opinions of the Certification Division, the Green Food Evaluation Committee shall conduct a comprehensive evaluation within 10 working days and make a final certification conclusion.
2. The final certification conclusion is divided into two situations: certification qualified and certification unqualified.
3. If the conclusion is "certification qualified", Article 8 shall be implemented.
4. If the conclusion is "certification unqualified", the Secretariat of the Evaluation Committee shall, within 2 working days after making the final conclusion, send the "Certification Conclusion Notice" to the applicant and copy it to the Provincial Green Office. The application shall no longer be accepted in the current production cycle.
8. Issuance of Certificate
1. The Center shall, within 5 working days, send the relevant documents for certificate processing to the applicant that is "certification qualified", and copy them to the Provincial Green Office. The applicant shall sign the "Green Food Label Trademark Use License Contract" with the Center within 60 working days.
2. The Director of the Center shall sign and issue the certificate.
The above are the rules and process for green food label certification. Any domestic Chinese enterprise with the conditions for green food production may apply for green food certification according to the procedures, while overseas enterprises shall be otherwise specified. The green food label consists of three parts, namely the sun above, the leaves below and the bud in the center, symbolizing natural ecology; the color is green, symbolizing life, agriculture and environmental protection.
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