All organic produce must only contain food which has been farmed organically. This means not using fertilisers or pesticides which have not been approved to be organic.
It also means that the land on which the food has been grown must have been farmed organically during the conversion period (normally two years). Only then can a product be sold as organic.
The 95 per cent rule
Manufacturers of organic food are permitted to use some approved non-organic products, so long as 95% of the ingredients are organic.
If the organic ingredients make up only 70-95% of a particular product, it may NOT be labelled an organic product. However, the organic ingredients may be specified on the packaging.
It is not always possible to make products entirely from organic ingredients, since not all ingredients are available in organic form.
Stamp of approval
Labels on food sold as 'organic' must indicate the organic certification body that the processor or packer is registered with. The labels must include a code number, and the name or trademark of the certification body may also be shown.