SEEDS AND PLANTING MATERIAL

• Organic seeds, seedlings and vegetative propagative materials mutbe used where available.
• If certified organic is unavailable, then seed and vegetative reproductive material may be taken from a mother plant (in the case of seeds) and a parent plant (in the case of vegetative propagating material) which have been produced under certified conversion to organic production.

CROP PROTECTION

The following are allowed for weed management:

• Biological control agents
• BioGrocertified/approved    bio-dynamic peppers   
• Mechanical and thermal weed control techniques,    such as flame weeding
• Plastic and reflective mulches. Onlyplastic    products    basedonpolyethylene,    polypropyleneand    polycarbonatesare    allowed.

Prohibited weed management approaches:

• Chemical/synthetic herbicides
• Solarisation

Permitted pest management approaches:

• Mechanical controls eg traps, barriers, sound scares, lures, etc
• Biodynamic preparations and peppers
• Biological controls eg introduction of parasites, predators, and disease organisms, diatomaceous earth
• Disease organisms egBacillus thuriengensis (Bt) products
• Homeopathic preparations
• Microbial products
• Natural acids, eg citric acid, natural vinegar
• Pheromone products
• Potassium bicarbonate
• Soft soaps (potassium based soaps)
• Salt water
• Vegetable oils

FERTILIZERS AND SOIL CONDITIONERS

Composts and vermicasts should have the following:

• May be made on the farm or purchased from BioGro certified/approved sources.
• Made on the farm must be sourced from the certified properties or ingredients selected in compliance with the BioGro Compost Guide.
• Made on the farm must heated, aerated ad mixed, matured sufficiently and have been produced in requirements.

Nitrogen:

• Application rates of compost along with other fertilizer addition must not lead to excessive levels of available nitrogen
• Nitrogen applied through the use of approved composts and foliar fertilizers, should be no more than that required for the current crop, and as a guide should not exceed 170kg nitrogen per hectare per year.

Permitted fertilizers and soil conditioners:

• Food and textile industry by-products of biodegradable material ie of microbial, plant or animal origin, free of synthetic additives.
• Biological activators
• Liquid fertilizer including vermicast liquid and compost teas

Prohibited fertilizers and soil conditioners:

• Sewage by-products
• Raw manure
• Sewage manure and composts containing human excrement iefaeces and urine
• Thermal sterilization
• Burning vegetation

Organic plants shall be produced in either of the following methods: 

• Cultivation management methods so as to reduce the load from agricultural production on the environment as much as possible, by avoiding the use of chemical synthetic fertilizers and substances for plant pest and disease control in principle and exercising the farmland productivity derived from original soils (including productivity derived from agricultural and forestry products, in case of fungi production) in order to sustain and enhance the natural recycling function of agriculture;
• Harvest organic plants by methods so as not to interfere in preserving the ecosystem in collection areas (areas for collecting plants growing naturally; hereafter the same).

SEEDS AND PLANTING MATERIALS

• When choosing propagation material, seeds and vegetable reproduction material must be of organic origin, whereas the use of genetically modified material or obtained from genetically modified organisms (GMOs) is not admitted.
• Conventional material used for propagation, must not be GMO and/or derived therefrom GMO, and substances not allowed by the present Standard may not be used.
• Seedlings used for vegetable production must be obtained in compliance with the organic method.
• If perennial plants from conventional agriculture are bedded in plots that have exhausted its conversion period, the crop obtained during the first vegetative cycle cannot be marketed as “organic”.
• Burning of crop residue is not admitted.

MUSHROOM PRODUCTION

Products originating from animal excrement including the following products may be used for substrata:

• Dung
• Livestock farming effluents

Pasteurisation and sterilization for the multiplication of mycelium is permitted.

CROP PROTECTION

Use of synthetic herbicides, fungicides, insecticides and other pesticides
Prohibited.

Use of synthetic growth regulators and synthetic dyes
Prohibited.

Thermic weed control and physical methods for pest, disease and weed management
Permitted.

Thermic sterilisation of soils to combat pests and diseases
Restricted to circumstances where a proper rotation or renewal of soil cannot take place.

• The fertility and biological activity of the soil shall be maintained and increased by multiannual crop rotation including legumes and other green manure crops, and by the application of livestock manure or organic material, both preferably composted, from organic production.
• Food produced from in-conversion crops shall contain only one crop ingredient of agricultural origin.

The essential elements of the organic plant production management system are:

• Soil fertility management
• Choice of species and varieties
• Multiannual crop rotation
• Recycling organic materials and cultivation techniques

FERTILIZERS AND SOIL CONDITIONERS

• No restriction in total amount allowed. Amount: maximum of 170kg nitrogen/hectare.
• Domestic refuse is allowed if composted.
• Use of slurry, urine and poultry manure is allowed.

CROP PROTECTION

• The prevention of damage caused by pests, diseases and weeds shall rely primarily on the protection by natural enemies, the choice of species and varieties, crop rotation, cultivation techniques and thermal process.