Soil Association Certification has announced that it will continue its freeze on fees for all licensees until March 2021 – so all core fees for organic schemes across food, farming, beauty and textiles will remain at 2019 levels.
In another effort to support smaller business, Soil Association Certification will offer free entry – limited to two entries per business – for the Best of Organic Market Awards to any Soil Association Certification licensee with organic sales turnover of under £250k. The BOOM awards will open for entries in December 2020.
Business development director at Soil Association Certification, Clare McDermott, said: “The COVID19 pandemic has placed unprecedented pressure on businesses, farmers and food suppliers across the supply chain. Soil Association Certification is, and always has been, committed to supporting the organic movement. In response to the predicted uncertainty ahead, we hope this price freeze will allow our certified growers, producers and processors to continue the fantastic work they’ve been doing to secure a resilient and sustainable food system – for now and for the future.”
Soil Association Certification was the first organic certification body to suspend physical inspections, and quickly introduced additional protocols in light of Covid-19, enabling inspection to continue and ensuring minimal disruption to new organic licences being issued.
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