Comments
Control Union (CU) India has said it faces “temporary suspension” till June 7 to develop a corrective action after IOAS (International Organic Accreditation Service) disallowed it from testing and sampling Indian organic textile products on charges of irregularities committed in its certification process.
CU India Managing Director Kris Van den Keybus, in a communication to its clients, said the certification body was trying to clear its name by providing all the documents required to IOAS within a week.
It expects its documents tobe reviewed on a priority “keepingthe urgency of the matter and giving natural justice with law of parity”.
CU India said the IOAS appeals committee rejected its appeal on March 3 and suspended its certification process with conditions.
The global organic certification body has permitted CU India to continue inspections according toits annual inspection plan, so that certified operators can maintain their existing certifications.
Reasons for suspension
Keybus said CU India received a letter from IOAS on December 8, 2022, suspending its accreditation for six months. But the organisation disputed the decision. It registered and submitted an appeal against the two reasons provided for its suspension.
IOAS said CU India had failed to evaluate all requirements and information for certification decisions applicable to Scope Certificates, which certify that organic food products conform to stipulated standards, and Transaction Certificates, which verify that a product sold or shipped conforms to stipulated standards.
It said CU India failed to manage non-conformities and ensure they did not recur.
During the period of suspension, CU India will not accept any new application or issue any certificate for GOTS (General Organic Textile Standards) or TE (Textile Exchange) that were in process as of March 3, 2023.
It will not extend scope certification to existing operators to add any new products, processes or units. It will not issue any transaction certificate either during its suspension, CI India said.
The CU India communication comes on the heels of some of its clients, including members of the Tamilnadu Spinners’ Association, expressing concern over the suspension.
CU India is an arm of one of the largest certifiers of organic cotton, Control Union Nederland BV, which is based in Rotterdam.
Comments
COMMENT NOW
Comments
Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.
We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.