Organic Food Safety

In light of World Food Safety Day, we asked our Food Safety & Quality Manager, Maarten Molenaar, to shed light on the key topics currently shaping the organic food sector.

In the organic food sector, food safety extends beyond the traditional concerns. While pesticide residues remain a hot topic, issues such as fraud prevention and traceability are increasingly in the spotlight. “Traceability is crucial,” Maarten notes. “The presence of non-authorised substances in organic products is a red flag for potential risks to the integrity of the chain.”

At DO IT Organic, we prioritise preventive controls throughout the supply chain - both upstream with our suppliers and internally. Risk-based testing, certification oversight, and supplier screening are all high on the agenda.

Recent steps we have taken

We have recently strengthened our approach to food safety through several key initiatives:

Conducting risk analyses based on historical data, country-specific risks, and product characteristics.
Tightening our internal audit procedures.
Implementing a new laboratory testing programme for residues.
Providing training to supply chain partners on organic integrity and food safety.
Enhancing communication with external certification bodies, including those working with our suppliers.

These measures reinforce our commitment to ensuring that organic products remain safe, trustworthy, and of the highest quality.

The challenges

Is the importance of food safety always clear within the organic sector? “Not always,” Maarten admits. “The sector often relies on trust and ideals, and sometimes good intentions are taken at face value. But trust without verification is a risk.”

To improve this, we advocate for education throughout the chain - from farmers to consumers -, greater transparency about incidents so companies can learn from each other, and clear communication about what food safety means, specifically within organic.

Advice to other companies

We also asked what recommendations our Food Safety & Quality Manager would give to others in the sector:

Be proactive rather than reactive - food safety demands continuous attention and risk evaluation.
Invest in transparent relationships with suppliers; collaboration is key to integrity.
Build knowledge within your team, not only in quality management but also in legislation, fraud detection, and industry trends.
Test, trace, and document; without solid data, it’s hard to position yourself as a reliable partner.
Embed food safety as a core part of your mission, rather than a last-minute compliance check.

Looking ahead

When asked about Maarten's wish for the future of food safety, our Food Safety & Quality Manager summed it up beautifully: “A supply chain where every link takes responsibility and works together towards integrity, supported by open data, smart technologies, and shared standards. So that organic is not only clean and fair but demonstrably so - from farm to fork.”