Circular 16/2019/TT-BNNPTNT detailing Decree 109/2018/ND-CP on organic agriculture

CIRCULAR

Detailing a number of articles of the Government’s Decree No. 109/2018/ND-CP of August 29, 2018, on organic agriculture^[1]

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 15/2017/ND-CP of February 17, 2017, defining the functions, tasks, powers and organizational structure of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 107/2016/ND-CP of July 1, 2016, prescribing conditions for provision of conformity assessment services;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 109/2018/ND-CP of August 29, 2018, on organic agriculture;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 154/2018/ND-CP of September 11, 2018, amending, supplementing or annulling a number of regulations on investment and business conditions in the fields under the state management of the Ministry of Science and Technology and a number of regulations on specialized inspection;

At the proposal of the Agro Processing and Market Development Authority;

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development promulgates the Circular detailing a number of articles of the Government’s Decree No. 109/2018/ND-CP of August 29, 2018, on organic agriculture.

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1.Scope of regulation

This Circular details a number of articles of the Government’s Decree No. 109/2018/ND-CP of August 29, 2018, on organic agriculture (below referred to as Decree No. 109/2018/ND-CP), regarding:

1. Agencies in charge of receiving dossiers from, and granting registration numbers to, organizations certifying organic agricultural products.

2. Assessment for grant and supervision after the grant of certificates of products’ conformity with national standards on organic agriculture by certifying organizations.

3. Taking and testing of organic agricultural product samples.

4. Quality testing of organic agricultural products, and recall and disposal of inferior-quality organic agricultural products under the management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Article 2.Subjects of application

This Circular applies to organizations and individuals involved in activities related to the production, trading, and certification of organic agricultural products in the territory of Vietnam.

Chapter II

SPECIFIC PROVISIONS

Article 3.Agencies in charge of receiving dossiers for grant, re-grant, supplementation, and modification of certificates of registration for certification of products’ conformity with national standards on organic agriculture

1. Dossier-receiving agencies shall assume the responsibility for dossier appraisal for grant, re-grant, supplementation, and modification of certificates of registration for certification of products’ conformity with national standards on organic agriculture (below referred to as operation registration certificates).

2. Organizations certifying organic agricultural products (below referred to as certifying organizations) that wish to register for conducting certification of organic agricultural products in one (1) field shall submit dossiers to a specialized agency under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, specifically as follows:

a/ The Directorate of Fisheries shall receive registration dossiers in the field of fisheries.

b/ The Vietnam Administration of Forestry shall receive registration dossiers in the field of forestry.

c/ The Department of Crop Production shall receive registration dossiers in the field of cultivation.

d/ The Department of Livestock Production shall receive registration dossiers in the field of husbandry.

3. A certifying organization that registers for conducting certification of organic agricultural products in  2 (two) or more fields shall select and submit its dossier to 1 of the specialized agencies in charge of fields in which it registers for operation. The dossier-receiving agency shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with related agencies in, granting an operation registration certificate to the certifying organization.

4. A certifying organization that registers for re-grant, supplementation, and modification of its operation registration certificate shall submit a dossier as prescribed in Clause 2 or 3 of this Article.

5. Agencies granting operation registration certificates shall publicly announce organizations that are granted operation registration certificates on the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development’s portal and its portal within 5 (five) working days after granting such certificates.

Article 4.Registration numbers of certifying organizations

1. The registration number of a certifying organization is the registration number written in Form No. 01 in the Appendix to Decree No. 109/2018/ND-CP.

2. Each registration number shall be granted to one certifying organization only, and remains unchanged in case of re-grant, supplementation or modification of the operation registration certificate.

3. The Department of Science, Technology and Environment is the agency in charge of grant and management of registration numbers.

Article 5.Operation of certifying organizations

1. Methods of assessment for grant, and supervision after the grant of certificates of products’ conformity with national standards on organic agriculture must comply with Point dd, Clause 1, Article 5 (Method 5) of the Ministry of Science and Technology’s Circular No. 28/2012/TT-BKHCN of December 12, 2012, on declaration of standard conformity, declaration of regulation conformity, and standard and technical regulation conformity assessment methods, Vietnam’s standard TCVN 12134:2017 on organic agriculture - requirements for certifying organizations, and international, regional and foreign standards accepted in Vietnam.

2. Agricultural products of organizations and individuals possessing certificates of organic agricultural products may be affixed a mark corresponding to the certified applicable standards.

3. Organizations and individuals that wish to have their products certified as conformable with international, regional or foreign standards on organic agriculture for domestic sale must have their products certified by certifying organizations satisfying the conditions prescribed in Clause 2, Article 9 of Decree No. 109/2018/ND-CP.

Article 6.Quality inspection of organic agricultural products under the management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development

1. Specialized general departments and departments under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and provincial-level Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development shall, within the ambit of their assigned functions and tasks, conduct the quality inspection of organic agricultural products according to approved plans or when detecting signs of violation.

2. The quality inspection of organic agricultural products must comply with the Law on Quality of Products and Goods, Law on Food Safety and relevant laws.

Article 7.Sampling of organic agricultural products

1. Sample takers must possess certificates or written certifications of qualification for taking samples or certificates of participation in training or further training courses involving the taking of samples of the relevant products.

2. The sampling must comply with the national standards applicable to the to-be-sampled products, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development’s regulations.

Article 8.Testing of samples of organic agricultural products under the management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

1. Specialized general departments and departments shall use rapid testing methods accepted or approved by the Ministry of Health or Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to identify substances outside the list of those permitted for use under national standard TCVN 11041, and Vietnam-accepted international, regional and foreign standards.

2. Results obtained by using rapid test kits are initial results which shall be used only for screening and making orientations for subsequent confirmation testing at laboratories. Results obtained by using rapid test kits may not be used as a basis for handling violations.

3. Organic agricultural product samples which have positive results by using rapid test kits must go through confirmation testing at laboratories having registered for testing activities and accredited or designated in accordance with law before making conclusions.

4. Confirmation testing of organic agricultural product samples shall be conducted at laboratories having registered for testing activities and accredited or designated in accordance with law; cases showing positive results for a substance outside the list shall be considered violations.

Article 9.Recall of inferior-quality organic agricultural products under the management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development

1. Cases subject to recall of organic agricultural products are prescribed in Clause 3, Article 13 of Decree No. 109/2018/ND-CP.

2. Producers and traders shall formulate plans on recall of inferior-quality organic agricultural products.

3. Forms of recall of inferior-quality organic agricultural products:

a/ Voluntary recall by producers and traders;

b/ Compulsory recall at the request of competent state agencies.

Article 10.Disposal of inferior-quality organic agricultural products under the management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development

1. The disposal of recalled organic agricultural products must comply with Clause 4, Article 13 of Decree No. 109/2018/ND-CP.

2. The handling of cases of failure to ensure the quality of organic agricultural products must comply with the law on handling of administrative violations and relevant regulations on quality of products and goods and food safety.

Chapter III

ORGANIZATION OF IMPLEMENTATION

Article 11.Organization of implementation

1. The Agro Processing and Market Development Authority shall:

a/ Act as the advisory general unit in international cooperation in and development of organic agriculture;

b/ Assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with other units in, handling difficulties arising in the course of implementation of this Circular.

2. Specialized general departments and departments under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall:

a/ Provide professional training and further training in the examination, assessment and supervision of certifying organizations and quality of organic agricultural products;

b/ Receive dossiers for grant, re-grant, supplementation, modification and revocation of certificates of registration for conducting certification of conformity with national standards on organic agriculture in the fields assigned to them;

c/ Inspect and examine the certification of organic agricultural products by certifying organizations, ensuring transparency as prescribed by law;

d/ Conduct inspection and examination of organic agricultural product producers and traders and quality inspection of organic agricultural products.

3. The Department of Science, Technology and Environment shall grant registration numbers for certifying organizations at the proposal of specialized general departments and departments.

4. Provincial-level Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development shall:

a/ Coordinate with specialized agencies of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in examining certification activities of certifying organizations in their localities;

b/ Assume the prime responsibility for, or coordinate with specialized agencies of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in, examining organic agricultural product produces and traders and conducting quality inspection of organic agricultural products in their localities.

Article 12.Implementation provisions

1. This Circular takes effect on December 18, 2019. In case the legal documents and standards referred to in this Circular are amended, supplemented or replaced, the amending, supplementing or replacing documents and standards shall prevail.

2. Certifying organizations that have been grated certificates of registration for conducting certification of organic agricultural products under the Government’s Decree No. 107/2016/ND-CP of July 1, 2016, prescribing conditions for provision of conformity assessment services, shall re-register for a new one under Decree No. 109/2018/ND-CP after their certificates expire.

3. Any problems arising in the course of implementation of this Circular should be promptly reported to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for study for amendment and supplementation.-

For the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development
Deputy Minister
TRAN THANH NAM