Can you tell us a bit about yourself: who are you, where do you come from, what do you do?
I’m Thierry Stoedzel, Managing Director of Ecocert France, a leader in organic certification. The company is based in a rural area of south-west France. I have always been driven by the belief that we can breathe life into our regions while improving our environmental impact and offering quality products to consumers. Through this regulation, the organic sector pursues these objectives. Our mission is to ensure that the products we certify comply with the organic regulations.
The organic market has experienced a difficult few months and times are tough. How are you dealing with the situation?
It’s true that the organic sector has experienced some turbulence in recent years. I prefer to put a positive spin on the situation and tell myself that this crisis has revealed the importance of being resilient and adaptable for our companies. We still have a lot of challenges to face together, but I am confident in our future because we are on the right track. Some signals are starting to turn green, such as the better-than-expected number of commitments from producers for this 2024 season.
What advice can you give to businesses in the organic sector?
I recommend to companies that they remain agile and to innovate continually to stay in touch with and better understand their customers’ needs. I think that transparency and communication are also essential to retain consumers’ trust and better explain all the facets of the organic sector. Finally, partnerships and collaboration within the sector can strengthen our collective position to rise to the challenges ahead. This culture has existed for decades in the organic ecosystem, but we have to maintain it. It’s a strong marker of our collective identity and a unique asset to recover from the crisis.
What are the future projects of Ecocert France to support growth of the organic sector?
More than 10 years ago, we launched a label promoting canteens that source organic and local products. Since then, we have actively campaigned for this label to be widely available in every area, so that as many people as possible have access to organic and local food. There is even a law for this, called the EGALIM act. It requires managers of establishments open to the public to include at least 20% of organic produce on menus. Unfortunately, however, this law is not very well observed. I am convinced that if it were, the French organic sector would see an upturn. We are also working internally to transform Ecocert France. Our goal is to continue to innovate and to offer certification services that meet the highest expectations, while at the same time contributing to a sustainable world.
More information on Ecocert.com