Exporting organic products to Germany

Germany is the largest organic market in Europe. EU rules set the legal floor; the private association standards set the price of entry into the shelves that matter.

The EU framework that applies

Organic production, labelling and imports across the EU are governed by Regulation (EU) 2018/848, applicable since 1 January 2022, when it replaced Regulation (EC) 834/2007. National authorities administer and enforce it; they do not set their own organic standard.

Processed food may be labelled organic only where at least 95% of its agricultural ingredients by weight are organic, with the remainder drawn from the authorised list in the implementing rules.

What must appear on the label

The EU organic logo — the leaf of twelve white stars on green. Compulsory on pre-packaged organic food produced in the EU; optional on imported product.
The control body code, placed directly below the logo, in the format XX-BIO-NNN — ISO country code, then BIO or its national-language equivalent, then a three-character reference.
The agricultural origin statement below the code: EU Agriculture, non-EU Agriculture or EU/non-EU Agriculture. A country name may be used instead where at least 98% of the agricultural raw material comes from that country.

Getting a consignment in

Every organic consignment entering the EU needs an electronic Certificate of Inspection (COI) issued and endorsed in TRACES NT, under Delegated Regulation (EU) 2021/2306. Extracts are used where a consignment is split. The COI is issued in the country of export before the goods leave — it cannot be obtained afterwards.

There are two routes in. Under the compliance regime (Article 46), operators in third countries are certified against EU rules by control bodies the Commission has recognised, listed in Annex II of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/2325 and amended by implementing act. Under the older equivalence regime, product may enter from a recognised third country listed in Annex I of the same regulation.

A deadline worth watching. Recognition of the eleven remaining equivalent third countries — Argentina, Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, India, Israel, Japan, the Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Tunisia and the United States — together with the Annex II equivalence listings, is set to expire on 31 December 2026.

The Commission has tabled proposal COM(2025) 780 to extend that deadline, but as at the review date of this page it had not been adopted. Anyone sourcing from those eleven origins should confirm the current legal position before contracting for delivery beyond that date.

1) Mandatory organic standards and labels

Germany applies Regulation (EU) 2018/848 directly. The federal implementing legislation is the Öko-Landbaugesetz, with the Öko-Kennzeichengesetz governing use of the national mark.

German control body codes take the form DE-ÖKO-NNN — for example DE-ÖKO-001, DE-ÖKO-006.

The Bio-Siegel

The hexagonal green and black Bio-Siegel is the national organic mark. It is voluntary and sits alongside the compulsory EU leaf. Use of it must be notified to the Bundesanstalt für Landwirtschaft und Ernährung (BLE) in advance under the Öko-Kennzeichengesetz — it is not a mark you may simply apply.

2) Important voluntary standards and labels

In Germany the private association standards are commercially decisive, and all of them go beyond Regulation (EU) 2018/848 — typically on whole-farm conversion, stocking densities, permitted inputs and processing.

Bioland — the largest German organic association by membership.
Naturland — international in reach, with social criteria attached.
Demeter — biodynamic; the strictest of the three, and requires organic certification underneath.
Biokreis, Gäa, Ecoland — smaller regional associations.

Specialist organic retail (Bioläden, Alnatura, Denns) frequently requires one of these. Conventional grocery generally works to the EU baseline plus its own retailer specification.

3) Approved certification and control bodies

Control bodies are approved and supervised by the authorities of the Länder, with BLE acting as the federal coordinating body. Certification for the German market is carried out by approved private control bodies, not by the state.

An exporter outside the EU is not certified by a German body. You need a control body recognised by the Commission for your country and product category under Article 46, listed in Annex II of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/2325.

BLE, organic farming section — www.ble.de
Federal organic information portal — www.oekolandbau.de

4) Import requirements

Standard EU import procedure applies: an electronic COI in TRACES NT for every consignment, endorsed before departure, plus a first consignee in Germany registered under the organic control system.

German importers and first consignees must be notified to the competent authority of their Land and be under the supervision of an approved control body. Confirm your German buyer holds that registration before shipping — it is the importer's status, not yours, that clears the consignment.

The Bio-Siegel may only be applied after notification to BLE. Applying it without notification is an offence under the Öko-Kennzeichengesetz.

5) Further information

Bundesanstalt für Landwirtschaft und Ernährung (BLE)Federal competent authority; the list of approved control bodies and the Bio-Siegel notification procedure.
oekolandbau.deThe federal organic farming portal, including guidance for processors and importers.
Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL)Policy, national implementing legislation and the Öko-Kennzeichengesetz.
Regulation (EU) 2018/848The base act governing organic production, labelling and imports across the EU.
European Commission — organic farmingPolicy hub, legislation index and guidance on the import regime.
TRACES NTWhere the electronic Certificate of Inspection for every organic consignment is issued and endorsed.
Organic Farming Information System (OFIS)Commission database of control bodies and third-country recognitions.

Last reviewed: 2026-09-06