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	Nordic Swan Ecolabel Nordic Countries · Tier 3 Specialty	NATRUE European Union · Tier 2 Trusted	JAS Organic Japan · Tier 1 Gold	? 'Natural' (NOT a certification) Worldwide · Tier 4 Marketing
What it means	The official environmental label of the Nordic countries (Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Iceland). Covers ~60 product categories from cleaning products to hotels — NOT specifically an organic standard.	An EU-based natural-and-organic cosmetics certification. Three grades: Natural, Natural with Organic portion, and Organic.	Japan's national organic standard under the Japanese Agricultural Standard system. The mark must appear on any food sold as 'organic' (有機 or オーガニック) in Japan.	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.
Scope	Several categories	Cosmetics	Food	Several categories
Established	1989	2007	2001	—
Inspection	On-site + product review by national Ecolabel office	Annual third-party audit	Annual on-site by MAFF-registered certifier	None
Residue testing	Risk-based per category	Risk-based	Required for high-risk operations	None
Guarantees	Lifecycle-based environmental criteria for the product category. Restrictions on hazardous chemicals. Recyclability and packaging requirements. Audited every 3-5 years against an updated standard.	Restricted ingredient list (no synthetic fragrances, no silicones, no PEGs). Tiered organic content: Natural with Organic portion ≥70% certified organic; Organic ≥95%. Annual third-party verification.	≥95% organic ingredients. No synthetic pesticides, no synthetic fertilizers, no GMOs. Annual inspection by a MAFF-registered certifier.	Nothing. It is not a certification and there is no body verifying anything.
Does NOT	Doesn't certify food as organic — Nordic Swan on a food package means lower-environmental-impact, not 'no synthetic pesticides'.	Mark is trademark-protected.	Mutual recognition with the US, EU, and Canada applies to specific product categories — check each agreement before importing.	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.

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