Applications to support Organic Production Mode Certification open - Communication

Secretaria Regional da Agricultura e Alimentação

The Regional Secretariat for Agriculture and Food, through the Regional Directorate for Rural Development, informs that applications to support Organic Production Mode Certification are open until October 25.

Expenses incurred with the procurement for the provision of services with a certification body for the year 2023 are eligible under this support measure.

According to the Regional Secretary for Agriculture and Food, António Ventura, the Regional Government defined "the creation of policies aimed at the agricultural sector focusing on mechanisms to enhance the quality of products using organic methods" as one of its goals.

In this regard, he continued, ‘it is essential to promote producers' access to more selective and differentiated markets, thus recognising the specific characteristics of companies in a remote archipelago" such as the Azores. 

"In this context, it is necessary to guarantee the quality of organic production and respect for biodiversity and the prevention of natural resources, through the application of demanding standards in production methods, aligned with consumer preference for products sourced using natural substances," he added.

Applications and supporting documents or certificates of eligibility should be submitted electronically using the form available on the GestPDR portal (https://gestpdr.azores.gov.pt/), and authenticated with the assigned identification code. Alternatively, they can be submitted at the Agrarian Development Service, where the form will also be authenticated by the beneficiary.