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	? 'Natural' (NOT a certification) Worldwide · Tier 4 Marketing	Bio Suisse 'Knospe' (Bud) Switzerland · Tier 2 Trusted	COSMOS-Organic / Natural European Union · Tier 2 Trusted	Fair for Life Global · Tier 2 Trusted
What it means	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 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).	Combined organic + fair-trade + social-responsibility certification. Issued by Ecocert (originally developed by IMOswiss). Stricter than baseline Fairtrade on labour conditions; often paired with an organic mark on the same product.
Scope	Several categories	Food	Cosmetics	Several categories
Established	—	1981	2010	2006
Inspection	None	Annual on-site, bio.inspecta accredited	Annual on-site by COSMOS-accredited certifier	Annual on-site, Ecocert-administered
Residue testing	None	Required	Risk-based	Risk-based
Guarantees	Nothing. It is not a certification and there is no body verifying anything.	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.	Fair pricing for producers. Compliance with ILO core conventions on labour rights, no forced or child labour. Environmental criteria including organic-or-equivalent farming practices. Annual on-site audit by Ecocert.
Does NOT	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.	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.	Doesn't itself mean organic — pair with an organic mark for the full picture.

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