COPAE
Consejo de la Producción Agraria Ecológica del Principado de Asturias (COPAE)
The Consejo de la Producción Agraria Ecológica del Principado de Asturias (COPAE) is a management entity set up by the Agricultural Regional Ministry in order to carry out the official control of organic production.
Organisation Chart (COPAE)
The governing body of COPAE is the plenary of the Council, in which producers, processors, consumers and the Administration of the Principality of Asturias are represented.
Its functioning is regulated by an Internal Regime Regulation, passed by the plenary of the Council.
COPAE Roles
COPAE’s main role is to control and certify organic production
But it also holds other public roles, such as managing the register of organic operators, safeguarding compliance with organic production regulations, promoting the consumption of organic food, and disseminating and promoting organic production, and organic production systems.
Registers
COPAE controls organic production regulations in all the production, transformation and distribution phases of organic products. Thus, COPAE is responsible for the management of the following operators’ registers:
Producers
In terms of agricultural, livestock or aquaculture productions.
Processors
In terms of the companies that process, transform or distribute products.
Importers
In terms of import activities from third countries.
Retailers
For businesses that handle or sell organic products to end users or consumers, in bulk or by pieces.
Hotel and Catering Establishments
To guarantee the origin of organic products, COPAE offers the possibility of signing collaboration agreements with mass catering businesses, creating a new register to control restaurants or mass catering businesses that prepare menus or dishes with organic ingredients.
REGOE
At a national level, there is a general register of organic operators (REGOE). This register can be accessed through the website of the Ministry of Agriculture.
Statistics
Results in figures
COPAE collects data on organic production on a yearly basis. The information provided includes the number of operators per activity, the registered surface area per crop, livestock farms or types of industries, among other data.
Statistical data are available from the year 2001, on the website of the Ministry for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, for Asturias as well as for other Autonomous Communities in Spain.
Moreover, COPAE publishes the distribution maps of organic production in Asturias, broken down by councils/municipalities
Fees
Public and non-profit
One of the duties established by the European legislation in terms of organic production is the operators’ contribution to the control costs. Thus, COPAE establishes different registration and maintenance fees, depending on the nature of the operator and certified activities.
COPAE is a public and non-profit management body. The revenues from the operators’ fees are allocated to cover some of the control and operating expenses, as well as part of the organic production promotion expenses.
As these are public roles assigned by the Administration, COPAE also receives funds from the Regional Ministry of Agriculture.
Regulations
Organic production is regulated at a European level. The updated legislation on organic production, at a European and national level, can be consulted on the website of the Ministry of Agriculture.
Go to national and European regulations
In Asturias, the regulatory documents are:
COPAE’s internal regulation
Catalogue of non-compliances and measures related to organic production
Decision on the exemption of certain retailers
