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	COSMOS-Organic / Natural European Union · Tier 2 Trusted	Bioland Germany · Tier 2 Trusted	Bio Suisse 'Knospe' (Bud) Switzerland · Tier 2 Trusted	USDA Organic United States · Tier 1 Gold
What it means	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).	Germany's largest organic farmers' association. Bioland-certified farms operate to a stricter private standard than the EU baseline.	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 US Department of Agriculture's national organic standard. The green-and-white seal is the legal mark for any food sold as 'organic' in the United States.
Scope	Cosmetics	Food	Food	Food
Established	2010	1971	1981	2002
Inspection	Annual on-site by COSMOS-accredited certifier	Annual on-site by Bioland-accredited inspectors	Annual on-site, bio.inspecta accredited	Annual on-site by USDA-accredited certifier
Residue testing	Risk-based	Required	Required	Required on ≥5% of operations annually
Guarantees	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.	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.	Whole-farm conversion. Lower nitrogen inputs than the Swiss federal organic baseline. Strong animal welfare requirements. Annual on-site inspection.	At least 95% of ingredients are certified organic (the '100% Organic' variant requires every ingredient). No synthetic pesticides, no synthetic fertilizers, no GMOs, no sewage sludge, no irradiation. Annual on-site inspection by a USDA-accredited certifier. Residue testing on at least 5% of certified operations each year.
Does NOT	Doesn't certify clinical effectiveness or skin tolerance.	Like Naturland, membership-based — only Bioland-association farms can use the mark.	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 nutrition, taste, or animal welfare specifically (separate marks like AWA cover welfare). Doesn't guarantee local production — a 'USDA Organic' product can be grown anywhere with an accredited inspector.

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