All certifications

Side-by-side

Compare certifications.

Up to four certifications, side by side. Choose which ones

	USDA Organic United States · Tier 1 Gold	EU Ecolabel (Flower) European Union · Tier 3 Specialty	OTC OEKO-TEX Organic Cotton Global · Tier 2 Trusted	Non-GMO Project Verified United States · Tier 3 Specialty
What it means	The US Department of Agriculture's national organic standard. The green-and-white seal is the legal mark for any food sold as 'organic' in the United States.	The European Commission's voluntary environmental label. Covers cleaning products, paper, textiles, electronics, accommodation services. NOT an organic mark.	Launched April 2023 by the OEKO-TEX Association. A separate certificate from Standard 100 that combines the Standard 100 chemical-residue test with verified organic-cotton supply chain — addressing the long-standing confusion that Standard 100 alone is NOT an organic mark.	North America's leading 'no genetically modified organisms' certification. Tests for the presence of GMOs in finished products. NOT organic.
Scope	Food	Several categories	Textiles	Food
Established	2002	1992	2023	2010
Inspection	Annual on-site by USDA-accredited certifier	Annual audit by national Ecolabel competent body	Annual on-site by OEKO-TEX-accredited institute (Hohenstein et al.)	Annual third-party audit + lab testing
Residue testing	Required on ≥5% of operations annually	Per-category limits	Required (Standard 100 panel + GMO/pesticide screening)	GMO testing only (not pesticide)
Guarantees	At least 95% of ingredients are certified organic (the '100% Organic' variant requires every ingredient). No synthetic pesticides, no synthetic fertilizers, no GMOs, no sewage sludge, no irradiation. Annual on-site inspection by a USDA-accredited certifier. Residue testing on at least 5% of certified operations each year.	Lifecycle-based environmental criteria per product category. Restrictions on hazardous chemicals. Annual licence renewal with audit.	Two grades: 'Organic Cotton' (100% certified-organic cotton) and 'Organic Cotton Blended' (≥70% certified-organic cotton). Full Standard 100 chemical residue test on the finished product. Additional GMO test + pesticide residue test specific to organic farming. Verified chain of custody from farm to finished product. Annual re-certification with independent OEKO-TEX institute audits.	Verified absence of GMO ingredients (with action thresholds, not zero tolerance). Annual third-party verification. Tracing and segregation across the supply chain.
Does NOT	Doesn't certify nutrition, taste, or animal welfare specifically (separate marks like AWA cover welfare). Doesn't guarantee local production — a 'USDA Organic' product can be grown anywhere with an accredited inspector.	Doesn't apply to food. Doesn't mean organic.	Doesn't certify the social/labour conditions across the supply chain in the way GOTS does (use OEKO-TEX STeP for that, or pair with GOTS). Cotton-only — doesn't apply to other organic fibres (wool, hemp, linen).	Doesn't mean organic — Non-GMO products can use synthetic pesticides and fertilizers freely.

Choose up to 4 (4 chosen)

That's four — remove one to add another.

Stay in the loop

Get notified when we publish new articles, updates, and organic guides. No spam, just honest content, straight to your inbox.

Compare certifications · Organic.is