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	Fairtrade International Global · Tier 3 Specialty	China Organic (COFCC) China · Tier 1 Gold	? 'Natural' (NOT a certification) Worldwide · Tier 4 Marketing	COSMOS-Organic / Natural European Union · Tier 2 Trusted
What it means	Certifies fair prices and conditions for producers in developing countries — not organic, not environmental. Common on coffee, cocoa, sugar, bananas, tea.	China's national organic certification under the Certification and Accreditation Administration. Mandatory on any product sold as '有机' (organic) in mainland China.	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.	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	Several categories	Cosmetics
Established	1997	2005	—	2010
Inspection	Annual on-site by FLOCERT (independent of Fairtrade International)	Annual on-site by CNCA-accredited certifier	None	Annual on-site by COSMOS-accredited certifier
Residue testing	Not for organic — Fairtrade alone doesn't test residues	Required	None	Risk-based
Guarantees	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.	≥95% organic ingredients. No synthetic pesticides, no GMOs. Annual third-party certification. Each certified product carries a unique 17-digit traceability code.	Nothing. It is not a certification and there is no body verifying anything.	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	Doesn't mean organic — many Fairtrade products are conventionally grown. A separate Fairtrade-Organic dual certification exists.	Imported organic foods must be re-certified under the Chinese standard — overseas certifications alone are not accepted for the 有机 label.	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 certify clinical effectiveness or skin tolerance.

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