What happened: NCOL coordination for certified organic farming and market access
National Cooperative Organics Limited (NCOL) coordinates with State-level cooperative federations and other cooperative institutions to promote certified organic farming and to move organic produce through the organic value chain. Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah stated in a Rajya Sabha written reply that NCOL coordinates with State Cooperative Departments and nodal agencies through Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs), as appropriate.
NCOL’s stated coordination also involves enabling cooperative partners to participate in the organic value chain—aggregation, procurement, processing, packaging, and marketing of organic produce under the brand "Bharat Organics".
On the certification and compliance side, Amit Shah stated that NCOL facilitates the formation of National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP)-certified Internal Control System (ICS) groups through cooperative institutions. In plain words, an Internal Control System (ICS) is a group-level mechanism intended to help participating producers follow organic requirements.
Background: State cooperative federations already work on organic products
Amit Shah stated that several State-level Cooperative Federations are already engaged in organic farming-related activities in their respective States. These activities include organic procurement, processing, branding, marketing, and promotion of organic products.