Role and responsibility of Regional Council

• Training and support to existing and new local groups in procedures and paper work necessary for each farmer’s organic guarantee.
• Translate and print PGS paper work in local language
• Register local groups and assist local groups for data uploading.
• Confirms that the Local Group Summary Worksheet listing all the farms that are to be Certified Organic is complete and was conscientiously maintained by the group
• Can NOT pick and choose individual farmers to certify, only approve/confirms the collective decision of the Local Group as a whole and organic integrity of the system adopted by the local group.
• Activate and/or issue certification UID number to each approved Local Group (received from the instant UID Pool maintained on PGS Website).
• Print and distribute Scope Certificates to individual farmer.
• Participate in sampling of Local Group farm appraisals.
• Provide Local Groups with guidelines for “Non‐compliance Sanctions” .
• To ensure complete transparency of the certification process.
• To facilitate Mutual Recognition and Support for the various groups (and individual farmers) on a national level by allowing Regional Councils to audit the Organic Guarantee of certified farms in other Regional Councils.
• To quickly build trust and credibility in the system as a whole ensure access to members of the public and media.