Food & agriculture
EU Organic Regulation
Definition
The EU Organic Regulation — Regulation (EU) 2018/848 — is the European Union's legislative framework governing organic production, labelling and controls. Published in June 2018 and applicable since 1 January 2022, it replaced Regulation (EC) No 834/2007, which had governed organic farming at EU level since 1991's original rules.
References
legal framework, timeline
import regime change, smallholder impacts
Overview
What it means
The regulation tightens production rules (crop rotation, plant reproductive material, authorised substances), strengthens the control system, and shifts third-country trade from 'equivalence' to full 'compliance' with EU rules — with major implications for smallholder groups exporting coffee, cocoa, spices and other organic products, including revised rules for certification as 'groups of operators'.
How it is used
Applied by farmers, processors, certifiers and importers of organic products into the EU; underpins the EU organic logo and the Farm to Fork target of 25% organic farmland by 2030.
Why it matters
It defines what 'organic' legally means in one of the world's largest organic markets, with global supply-chain effects.