Organic Agriculture Division

Organic Agriculture Division

Pursuant to Organic Agriculture Act, as amended by Republic Act No. 11511 (An Act Amending Republic Act No. 10068 or the Organic Agriculture Act of 2010), the OAD implements organic agriculture regulations through the following functions:

  1. Accreditation of organic certifying body (OCB) performing third-party certification, and Core Participatory Guarantee System (PGS) Groups as OCB (Sections 12, 13 and 14);
  2. Inspection and certification of five (5) individual farms as Core PGS Groups, in compliance with the Philippine National Standard (PNS) for organic agriculture (Sections 12 and 14);
  3. Registration of organic producers (integrated organic farms, and organic inputs), and product registration of organic inputs [organic soil amendments (OSA) and organic bio-control agents (OBCA)] (Sections 12 and 17); and
  4. Provision of technical assistance relative to organic agriculture regulations, and handling of complaints and appeals on inspection and certification issues (Sections 12 and 14).

The Organic Agriculture Division is also responsible for the monitoring of registered organic inputs producers and products, and integrated organic farms; and enforcement of “organic” labeling requirements of agricultural and fishery products.

Major functions

Duties and Responsibilities

Accreditation Section
The Accreditation Section is responsible for the accreditation of OCB performing third-party certification, and Core PGS Groups as OCB. Its functions also include the conduct of office and witness audits, and surveillance to accredited OCB.

Certification Section
The Certification Section is responsible for the conduct of inspection on compliance of PGS Groups with the PNS for organic agriculture, and organic certification of five (5) individual farms as a Core PGS Group. Its functions also include the conduct of random inspections to organic producers and produce/products; and handling of organic certification of producers from OCB with revoked accreditation.

Registration Section
The Registration Section is responsible for the registration of organic inputs such as OSA and OBCA; and organic producers (integrated organic farms, and OSA and OBCA producers). Its functions also include the issuance of Experimental Use Permits (EUP) and Organic Input Importation and Exportation Permits/Clearances; conduct of field compliance assessments of on-going OBCA efficacy trials, accreditation of OBCA researchers; monitoring of registered organic inputs and input producers; and post-market surveillance of produce and products with “organic”claim.

Compliance Assistance Section
The Compliance Assistance Section is responsible for the provision of technical assistance to organic agriculture stakeholders relative to their technical concerns and compliance with various organic agriculture standards and regulations. Its functions also include the handling of complaints and appeals on inspection and certification issues..

Functional Structure