CERES is already active in Russia and is now also applying for accreditation in accordance with the Russian Organic Regulation that came into force on January 1, 2020. Gerald A. Herrmann from Organic Services and Ivan Garaev have been working together for more than two years, developing strategies for the credibility of Russian organic products.

The Check Organic mass balance platform plays a central role in creating this credibility. Mass balancing can prevent fraud since the organic acreage, its yields and product transactions are recorded and certified by the external certifier, in this case CERES. The sold quantities can therefore be traced along the supply chain.

This cooperation could set an important precedence for removing the Russian Federation from the list of countries that are subject to the EU special guidelines, if applied to the whole Federation. These guidelines require additional inspections and laboratory tests and are costly for producers and retailers.

In addition, the IoA will introduce an internal audit system for farms using the Ecert Basic certification software from Organic Services. As a member of the Easy-Cert Group, CERES will work with Ecert, the world's leading software for certification management. Since Ecert, Ecert Basic and Check Organic are all based on the same ERP certification software, data and information can be easily exchanged between the systems.

After BIOFACH, Mr. Garaev visited Organic Services for a two-day training in Tutzing to get to know Ecert Basic and Check Organic in detail. We look forward to our cooperation!