Criteria – According to what criteria the S.U.N.-Certificate is issued?

Before issuing the S.U.N.-Certificate, the following criteria – according to the respective production area and the examined product – will be illuminated and carefully examined by independent reviewers.

In order to guarantee a full independence, the reviewers are not instructed by NatureLife-International, the issuing institution of the S.U.N.-Certificate, but by independent and sworn auditing companies.

After the successful auditing – including the fulfilment of all criteria and the signing of a catalogue of demands and objectives for an optimisation together with an obligatory schedule – the S.U.N.-Certificate is issued for three years.

The following criteria will be examined before the issuance of the Certificate:

Part I: Biodiversity Assessment

1. Forest Ecosystems
2. Agro-Ecosystems
3. Grassland Ecosystems
4. Aquatic Ecosystems
5. Special Ecosystems and Habitats

Part II: Carbon Sequestration

1. Concerns to be Addressed
2. Procedure and Calculation of Sequestration

Part III: Green Farming/Production and Management

1. Land-Use and Land-Management Types to be Considered
2. Requirements for Plant Production
3. Fundamentals of Site Management

Part IV: Faire Trade and Benefit Sharing

1. Monetary Benefits
2. Social Justice and Non-Monetary Benefit
3. Technical Benefits
4. Indirect Benefits