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	COSMOS-Organic / Natural European Union · Tier 2 Trusted	Rainforest Alliance Global · Tier 3 Specialty	ECO Ecocert France · Tier 2 Trusted	Bio Suisse 'Knospe' (Bud) Switzerland · Tier 2 Trusted
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).	Sustainable-agriculture certification (post-2020 merged standard with UTZ). Covers environmental, social, and economic criteria. NOT an organic mark.	France-based independent certifier operating in 130+ countries. One of the world's largest organic + cosmetics + textile certifiers. The 'Ecocert' wordmark on a package usually means Ecocert was the accredited body that ran the inspection against the national/EU standard.	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.
Scope	Cosmetics	Food	Several categories	Food
Established	2010	1987	1991	1981
Inspection	Annual on-site by COSMOS-accredited certifier	Annual third-party audit (RA-accredited)	Annual on-site, ISO 17065-accredited	Annual on-site, bio.inspecta accredited
Residue testing	Risk-based	Risk-based	Risk-based per standard	Required
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.	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.	Inspection against the relevant national or private organic standard (EU 2018/848, USDA NOP, COSMOS, GOTS, Fair for Life, etc.). Annual on-site inspection. Accredited under multiple national systems including USDA NOP and EU 2018/848.	Whole-farm conversion. Lower nitrogen inputs than the Swiss federal organic baseline. Strong animal welfare requirements. Annual on-site inspection.
Does NOT	Doesn't certify clinical effectiveness or skin tolerance.	Allows synthetic pesticides — does NOT meet any organic standard. Often confused with organic but it's a different programme.	Ecocert is the certifier, not the standard — the actual rules come from whichever organic regulation the product is certified under.	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.

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