Background of Organic Agricultural Product Certification Auditor Online Training Platform
Taiwan initiated its official program for organic agriculture over 20 years ago in 1996. Through the collective effort from industrial, academic, and research participants, organic agriculture in Taiwan had grown from 538 operators and 556 hectares at the beginning to 5,131 households and 17,365 hectares in December 2023—a whopping 30 fold increase!
Behind that tremendous growth is a robust third-party certification system supported by certification bodies and their certification auditors, who are the cornerstone of this industry. To become eligible to practice frontline auditing works for organic certification, certification auditors must undergo minimum hours of training and onsite auditing works required by Taiwan’s “Organic Agriculture Promotion Act”.
Online training courses on this platform are available in both Chinese and English. This eliminates distance and time barriers and provides equal access for auditors from domestic and abroad. Through the platform, certification bodies can also obtain the qualified list and reach out to qualified auditors from other countries and regions, enabling cross-regional collaborations and facilitating international exchanges. It is hoped that this platform leads to the expansion of organic certification in Taiwan and let the world see the country’s commitment and devotion to organic agriculture. Collectively we can move toward a path of more sustainable development.