Thank you to all CCOF members for choosing CCOF as your certifier. We look forward to another year of growing the organic movement with you.
CCOF recently conducted a fee analysis to ensure we keep costs down, make certification accessible, and remain competitive. We have a reputation for providing exceptional service and value, and we maintain these high levels by ensuring staff capacity and streamlined service.
As a result of our fee analysis, CCOF will make modest decreases and increases across many of our Annual Certification Fee tiers for 2022. Our intention is to minimize large fee increases between fee tiers to support long-term planning for CCOF members. As your business grows, certification costs increase to meet your operation’s growing needs. Our goal is to keep fee increases reasonable and predictable.
These fees are effective October 1, 2021, for all new applicants, and January 1, 2022, for existing clients.
CCOF Annual Certification Fees are based on your Organic Production Value (OPV), which is verified at each annual inspection. We offer payment plans and accommodate special billing needs. CCOF takes pride in offering a high level of fee transparency and support.
Learn more about how fees are calculated and view the CCOF fee schedule at www.ccof.org/fees. The fee schedule can also be found in the CCOF Certification Services Program Manual and on the back of your 2022 annual fee invoice (mailed in early November)
Retail and Restaurant Certification Fees
Effective January 1, 2022, we are adjusting the retail and restaurant certification fees to ensure we meet service needs for these unique businesses. The modified fee structure reflects the number of locations as well as the complexity of the operation. See the “Retail and Restaurant Fees” section in the CCOF Certification Services Program Manual.
Any retailer or restaurant that adds a new location and/or has over 10 locations will also incur an additional fee per location. The fee for adding a new location begins at $300. Fees to add a location will be higher for applications submitted less than 60 days prior to the location opening. See the “Adding Retail or Restaurant Fee Location” section in the CCOF Certification Services Program Manual.
CCOF is a nonprofit organization that supports the people who grow and make our food. CCOF strives to maintain reasonable fees while providing service-oriented organic certification and tools to grow your business. We also help direct organic producers toward financial resources, including the National Organic Certification Cost Share Program. CCOF gives back to the broader organic community by investing 2 percent of certification revenue into the CCOF Foundation, whose mission is to provide training for new and existing organic producers and public education on the benefits of organic.
All of us at CCOF sincerely appreciate your dedication to organic production.