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	COSMOS-Organic / Natural European Union · Tier 2 Trusted	? 'Natural' (NOT a certification) Worldwide · Tier 4 Marketing	Non-GMO Project Verified United States · Tier 3 Specialty	Fairtrade International Global · Tier 3 Specialty
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).	The word 'natural' on packaging is a marketing term, not a certification. In most jurisdictions there's no legal definition, no standard, and no inspection. A product labelled 'natural' can contain synthetic ingredients, pesticides, GMOs, and artificial flavours.	North America's leading 'no genetically modified organisms' certification. Tests for the presence of GMOs in finished products. NOT organic.	Certifies fair prices and conditions for producers in developing countries — not organic, not environmental. Common on coffee, cocoa, sugar, bananas, tea.
Scope	Cosmetics	Several categories	Food	Food
Established	2010	—	2010	1997
Inspection	Annual on-site by COSMOS-accredited certifier	None	Annual third-party audit + lab testing	Annual on-site by FLOCERT (independent of Fairtrade International)
Residue testing	Risk-based	None	GMO testing only (not pesticide)	Not for organic — Fairtrade alone doesn't test residues
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.	Nothing. It is not a certification and there is no body verifying anything.	Verified absence of GMO ingredients (with action thresholds, not zero tolerance). Annual third-party verification. Tracing and segregation across the supply chain.	Minimum price floors for producer cooperatives. Fairtrade Premium paid into community-development funds. Bans on the worst forms of child and forced labour. Producer organisations must be small-farmer cooperatives or hired-labour plantations meeting standards.
Does NOT	Doesn't certify clinical effectiveness or skin tolerance.	Doesn't mean organic. Doesn't mean pesticide-free. Doesn't mean GMO-free. Doesn't mean ethically produced. Some markets (e.g. the US FDA on food, EU on cosmetics) place very limited restrictions on the word, but enforcement is weak.	Doesn't mean organic — Non-GMO products can use synthetic pesticides and fertilizers freely.	Doesn't mean organic — many Fairtrade products are conventionally grown. A separate Fairtrade-Organic dual certification exists.

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