New Delhi, July 27 -- The National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP) was launched in 2001 by the Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Govt of India for exports of Organic products, and APEDA acts as the Secretariat for the implementation of the NPOP, the Ministry of Commerce & Industry said in a release on Sunday.

As per the release, the system of grower group certification was launched in 2005, as it was felt necessary to cater to small and marginal farmers.

Third-party certification is a mandatory requirement for the export of organic products. The NPOP standards for crop production have been recognised by the European Commission and Switzerland as equivalent to their country's standards and are also accepted...