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	Bioland Germany · Tier 2 Trusted	Rainforest Alliance Global · Tier 3 Specialty	Bio Suisse 'Knospe' (Bud) Switzerland · Tier 2 Trusted	COSMOS-Organic / Natural European Union · Tier 2 Trusted
What it means	Germany's largest organic farmers' association. Bioland-certified farms operate to a stricter private standard than the EU baseline.	Sustainable-agriculture certification (post-2020 merged standard with UTZ). Covers environmental, social, and economic criteria. NOT an organic mark.	The Swiss organic farmers' federation mark. The Knospe (Bud) is the dominant organic mark in Swiss supermarkets and operates to standards stricter than the Swiss federal organic ordinance.	The leading certification for organic cosmetics in Europe. Two grades: COSMOS Organic (≥95% organic agricultural ingredients) and COSMOS Natural (no organic minimum, but the same restricted-ingredient list).
Scope	Food	Food	Food	Cosmetics
Established	1971	1987	1981	2010
Inspection	Annual on-site by Bioland-accredited inspectors	Annual third-party audit (RA-accredited)	Annual on-site, bio.inspecta accredited	Annual on-site by COSMOS-accredited certifier
Residue testing	Required	Risk-based	Required	Risk-based
Guarantees	Whole-farm conversion (no parallel conventional production). Lower permitted nitrogen inputs than EU baseline. Animal welfare standards stricter than EU baseline. Annual on-site inspection.	Reduced (not eliminated) synthetic pesticide use, with bans on the most hazardous classes. Forest conservation requirements (no deforestation after the cut-off date). Worker welfare and community development requirements. Annual third-party audit.	Whole-farm conversion. Lower nitrogen inputs than the Swiss federal organic baseline. Strong animal welfare requirements. Annual on-site inspection.	COSMOS Organic: ≥95% organic agricultural ingredients. COSMOS Natural: minimum natural-origin ingredients with banned synthetic restrictions. No GMOs, no parabens, no PEGs, no synthetic fragrances, no SLS/SLES. Biodegradability requirements. Annual on-site audit.
Does NOT	Like Naturland, membership-based — only Bioland-association farms can use the mark.	Allows synthetic pesticides — does NOT meet any organic standard. Often confused with organic but it's a different programme.	Switzerland is outside the EU — the Knospe is recognised by the EU under the Switzerland-EU equivalence agreement, but not by USDA without further certification.	Doesn't certify clinical effectiveness or skin tolerance.

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