Official organic regulations
Current legislation on organic wine (2012) :
The European Standing Committee on Organic Farming adopted new rules for organic winemaking on 8 February 2012.
The regulation mainly provides for sulphite contents that are 30 to 50 mg/l lower than those of conventional wines. Producers who comply with it will be able to use the words "Vin Bio" and the European organic logo on their labels.
Until this date, only grapes were certified as "organically produced". From now on, winegrowers can replace this mention with "organic wine" on their labels, which may bear the European organic production logo. Subject to compliance with the rules of organic viticulture and winemaking.
The logo will also be allowed on wines produced before 2012. Only if the winegrowers can prove that they have respected the elaboration rules voted on 8/02/12.
The main difference between organic wine and conventional wine is the sulphite content:
In Organic, red wines must contain a maximum of 100 mg/l of total SO2. For whites and rosés the maximum is 150 mg/l (compared to 150 and 200 mg/l respectively in conventional). The differential will only be 30 mg/l of SO2 for wines with a residual sugar content of more than 2 g/l.
Oenological products :
Sorbic acid will be banned. And for additives of "natural origin" such as yeasts, tannins or albumin, organic preparations will be preferred as soon as they are available on the market.
Some prohibited oenological practices:
Cryoconcentration, partial dealcoholisation, physical removal of SO2, tartaric stabilisation by electrodialysis and with cation exchangers are not permitted.
Heat treatment up to 70°C, reverse osmosis and ion exchange resins remain on the list of permitted practices, but will be the subject of further discussion in 2015.
New ORGANIC regulations: what changes in 2021
The new Regulation was adopted by the Member States in 2018 and will enter into force on 1 January 2021. Several delegated and implementing acts are also forthcoming to clarify certain provisions, which does not allow us to draw up an exhaustive list of developments to date.
However, here are the main changes foreseen by the new organic regulation:
- an expansion of the range of certified organic products. New products will now be certifiable, such as beeswax, non-food essential oils, wool or salt.
- a more targeted control system. The principle of a minimum annual check per operator is maintained, as well as the principle of unannounced checks in addition to these. However, checks on the conformity of organic holdings by the certification bodies may be spaced 24 months apart. For example, if 3 consecutive visits have not detected any production faults.
- firmer import rules. Imported organic products will have to comply with European regulations or come from a third country that has signed a trade agreement guaranteeing equivalence with the European Union in terms of regulations and control systems.
- clear and reliable labelling. The consumer is informed, with the European logo, of the origin of agricultural raw materials. Including, where appropriate, the regional origin and the identity of the inspection body.
better access to heterogeneous or "hardy" seeds. Cases for organic producers with authorisation to market this type of seed. - maintaining the link to the ground. The link to the land is a very important concept in organic farming. Therefore, the regulation does not recognize hydroponics and bin production as organic practices. An exception has been negotiated with Finland, Sweden and Denmark who, for climatic and historical reasons, have accepted backyard cultivation. It will be maintained for a maximum period of 10 years and for existing greenhouses.
- the creation of a "group certification" for small producers. Farmers will be able to group together to jointly apply for organic certification. For small farmers, this is a way of pooling the administrative costs related to their conversion.
As stated in the preamble, this new regulation will take effect from 1 January 2021. It still needs to be supplemented by detailed rules.
