Exporting organic products to Korea
Korea's four equivalence arrangements cover processed food only. Fresh and unprocessed produce falls outside every one of them and needs Korean certification — which is the detail that most often surprises exporters.
1) Mandatory organic standards and labels
The governing law is the Act on the Promotion of Environment-Friendly Agriculture and Fisheries and the Management of and Support for Organic Foods, with its enforcement decree, enforcement rules and MAFRA notifications including the Standards for Labeling of Organic Food. Equivalence arrangements are concluded under Article 25 of that Act.
MAFRA sets policy and accredits certification bodies; NAQS, the National Agricultural Products Quality Management Service, audits those bodies and runs the import control system.
The marks — and two that are not organic
- 유기농 / 유기 (Organic) — organic agricultural and livestock products.
- 유기가공식품 (Organic processed food) — must be at least 95% organic.
- 무농약 (Non-pesticide) and 무항생제 (Non-antibiotic) — official government tiers, but not organic. They are distinctly sub-organic and are frequently confused with organic by foreign exporters.
Only certified product may be called organic. Confusing claims such as natural, no-chemical or low-chemical are prohibited. Soil-less and hydroponic production must be additionally declared. Labelling rules apply to both retail and non-retail containers.
2) Important voluntary standards and labels
- 무농약 and 무항생제 — voluntary, government-run, commercially important in Korean retail, and not organic.
- Non-pesticide raw material processed food, GAP, traceability and low-carbon certifications.
- USDA organic seal and the EU leaf may be shown alongside the Korean mark on product traded under an equivalence arrangement.
- Demeter and other private schemes carry no regulatory status in Korea.
3) Approved certification and control bodies
Certification is performed by private certification bodies accredited by MAFRA and audited by NAQS.
Korea differs from China and Brazil in an important way: MAFRA accredits foreign certification bodies to certify overseas operations to the Korean standard. That gives exporters from non-partner countries a workable route that China and Brazil do not offer.
Lists of accredited bodies and the equivalence arrangement documentation are published on the NAQS Enviagro portal. Where foreign certification is accepted at all, it is only through an arrangement and only within its scope; everything else needs Korean certification.
4) Import requirements
The import certificate
A NAQS Import Certificate of Organic Processed Foods, issued electronically in the e-NAQS Import Certificate System by the exporting country's certification body, before the consignment leaves. A printed copy accompanies the shipment and is presented on arrival. The electronic system is mandatory.
Documentation must carry an attestation naming the arrangement relied on — for example, Certified in compliance with the terms of the U.S.-Korea Organic Equivalency Arrangement.
The four arrangements
All four are limited to processed food, at least 95% organic, finally processed in the partner territory.
| Partner | Notes |
|---|---|
| United States | Excludes made with organic products; product from animals treated with antibiotics cannot be sold as organic in the US |
| European Union | Runs until further discussion |
| United Kingdom | The only one with a stated hard expiry date — check it before contracting |
| Canada | Canadian apples and pears produced with antibiotics cannot be labelled organic in Korea |
The crucial exclusion. Processed food is as defined by the Korean Food Code. Fresh and unprocessed agricultural products, and simple agricultural processed products, fall outside every arrangement. They must be certified to the Korean organic standard by a MAFRA-accredited body — as must all product from any country without an arrangement.
General MFDS food import clearance, Korean-language labelling and product registration apply on top of the organic requirements.
5) Further information
- NAQS Enviagro portalThe certification system, the marks, and the equivalence arrangements in English.
- e-NAQS Import Certificate SystemWhere the exporting certifier issues the certificate your consignment needs.
- AMS — Republic of KoreaDocumentation, labelling and scope of the US arrangement, from the US side.
- Korean Standards for Labeling of Organic Food (English)The labelling rules in translation.
Last reviewed: 2026-09-06