202-3002 32nd Ave, Vernon BC Canada V1T 2L7
info@certifiedorganic.bc.ca
The Canadian Organic Standards are reviewed and amended every five years to clarify any pieces that were causing confusion, to take into account submissions received from industry and organic stakeholders, to ensure standards compliance with Canada’s organic trading partners, and to ensure the standards remain up to date with the latest research and technologies.
Below are the latest updates and ways to take part in this important review!
December 2025
A major milestone has been reached—the Technical Committee on Organic Agriculture of the Canadian General Standards Board (CGSB) has voted: the version of the Canadian Organic Standards submitted for a vote on October 31 has been adopted by a large majority of the Technical Committee’s voting members.
The OFC, which has administered the CGSB revision process since 2023 in accordance with CGSB procedures, is pleased with the result; 32 of the 35 Technical Committee members voted in favor, and 3 members voted against CAN/CGSB-32.310 and CAN/CGSB-32.311.
However, the negative votes and comments must be resolved before the final version of the COS can be established. The Working Group Chairs will meet to evaluate and resolve negative comments and submit recommendations to the Technical Committee members.
Read more from the Organic Federation of Canada.
Submit your comments!
On May 30, 2025, the Canadian General Standards Board (CGSB) launched the 60-day public comment period during which all operators and stakeholders are invited to comment on the proposed modifications to the Canadian Organic Standards.
To view or download the 2025 drafts, click on the following links:
The OFC offers you a powerful tool for analyzing the changes to the Organic Standards under public review!
To help operators and stakeholders assess and comment on the proposed modifications to the COS, the OFC has created a guide that presents the justification behind each proposed change.
The background of the proposed revisions to the Canadian Organic Standards
To submit your comments, please use the following forms:
All comments shall be sent to CGSB – astrid.lozano@tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca
Your comment can be:
Deadline for submitting your comments – July 29, 2025
The public comment period will be held after the election
The Canadian General Standards Board (CGSB) must wait until the new government is sworn in before launching the 60-day public comment period on the proposed modifications to the 2020 Canadian Organic Standards.
The OFC has provided CGSB with drafts of the Canadian Organic Standards for public review, but the industry will not be able to submit its comments until the review period is launched by CGSB in May 2025.
But the industry’s patience will be rewarded: the OFC is breaking new ground and will provide operators and stakeholders with a document containing rationales for each of the proposed changes to the COS.
New public comment period
Take part in a public comment period and help clarify the standards!
The latest public comment period includes these topics: perennial crops managed as annual crops, non-organic perennial planting stock, using perennial transplants, and wood vinegar (permitted substances list).
Feedback from conformity verification bodies, certifying bodies, operators and other organic stakeholders is encouraged. Deadline for comments is Jan. 31, 2025. Learn more here (PDF).
New public comment period
Take part in a public comment period and help clarify the standards!
The latest public comment period includes these topics: heating temperature for the bottling of honey, status of components in a multi-component ingredient, composting obligation, ammonia water and use of collagen casings.
Feedback from conformity verification bodies, certifying bodies, operators and other organic stakeholders is encouraged. Deadline for comments is Jan. 31, 2025. Learn more here (PDF).
On September 16th, the Technical Committee met and reviewed multiple proposals from working groups. Some of these proposals were accepted, to be added to the draft standard which will be opened for public comment in 2025. Other proposals required further discussion and were returned to working groups to rework.
Next up: The Technical Committee will be meeting again in November, over three days in Ottawa during the Canada Organic Trade Association’s flagship event, the Organic Summit. There, they’ll review the majority of proposals in preparation of the draft Standards.
Nic Walser, our Accreditation Director, will be in attendance as Organic BC’s representative for this review. And, our Executive Director, Eva-Lena Lang, will be at the Summit to take part in the many inspiring presentations, engaging talks, and networking opportunities focused on the organic market and scientific insights.
New Public Comment Period
One of the best ways to get involved is to take part in a public comment period and help clarify the standards!
The latest public comment period includes these topics: heating temperature for the bottling of honey & ammonia water derived/extracted from a digester.
Feedback from conformity verification bodies, certifying bodies, operators and other organic stakeholders is encouraged. Deadline for comments is Oct. 11, 2024. Learn more here (PDF).
Animal welfare and biodiversity on the agenda of the standards’ review
In mid-September 2024, the Technical Committee on Organic Agriculture (TC) of the Canadian General Standards Board (CGSB) met to discuss proposed changes to the Canadian Organic Standards (COS).
During the five-hour online meeting, Working Group chairs presented various recommendations to improve the standards. The TC had three choices: to accept, reject or resubmit the recommendation to the Working Group (WG) if it needed clarification or background information. A draft containing all the recommended modifications to the standards will be made available for public review in the spring of 2025.
Survey Results: Should the Canadian Organic Standards contain requirements for social justice?
“No!” was the overwhelming response from organic producers surveyed by the Organic Federation of Canada in July 2024.
Although farmers support the concept of social justice and want to see farm workers treated fairly, 80% of organic farmers surveyed said they were strongly opposed to adding such social justice requirements to the standards. Most farmers didn’t even want non-binding recommendations about social justice. Just discussing such changes led to vehement, often angry, responses to the survey.
Should the Canadian Organic Standards contain requirements for social justice? Share your thoughts!
Although organic farming is based on the principles of health, ecology, care and fairness, the Canadian Organic Standards focus more on environmental impacts and animal welfare than the principle of fairness, which states “organic agriculture should build on relationships that ensure fairness with regard to the common environment and life opportunities.”
In the 2020 revision of the standards, the social fairness task force took a step towards incorporating the concept in the standards, adding a detailed description of social fairness (see Appendix C of the 2020 Standard).
Now, for the 2025 revision of the standards, the social justice task force has been considering whether or not to add social justice requirements that organic producers (farmers and processors) must meet to be certified organic.
The Organic Federation of Canada shared a great article (written by Janet Wallace) that digs into this topic, raises important questions, and outlines a proposed “meaningful but not scary” approach.
We invite you to give the article a read and then share your thoughts in the OFC’s Social Justice in the Organic Standards survey!
Read the article here, and take the survey here.
The 2025 review of the Canadian Organic Standards is underway, and an easy way to get involved is to take part in a public comment period and help clarify the standards!
Here’s how it works:
Visit organicfederation.ca/organic-standards-interpretation and click on the Public Comment Period link to have your say!
From the Organic Federation of Canada:
Work on the 2025 revision of the Canadian Organic Standards (COS) is progressing well. The working groups have worked through issues raised by the organic industry during the call for petitions in 2023. The result was 60 recommendations that are being presented to the voting members of the Canadian General Standards Board’s Technical Committee on OrganicAgriculture (TC). The first meeting of the TC was April 8.
These recommendations cover a wide range of practices: treated posts on organicfarmland, exercise periods for cows, calculation of the percentage of solid and liquid organic ingredients in prepared foods, guano as a permitted substance, biodiversity in maple groves, animal handling methods, and many more.
The Organic Federation of Canada (OFC) will publish a detailed account of the recommendations submitted and the decisions of the TC when complete.
Have you subscribed to the Info-Bio newsletter published by the Organic Federation of Canada? This is an excellent way to stay up-to-date on the COS review! Subscribe here.
