Certifications

Organic Certification

Otto Franck Import has been certified according to VO (EU) 2018/848 since the beginning of 2016. This means that we can now also offer you our products from certified organic farming. This also guarantees that the labelled foodstuffs have neither been genetically modified nor that chemical-synthetic pesticides, artificial fertilizers or sewage sludge have been used for cultivation. Various studies have shown that organic food has significantly lower pesticide residues and a significantly higher nutrient content.

Download - Organic certificate

MSC

Otto Franck Import was one of the first importers to be MSC certified for tinned tuna in 2009 and has passed this certification every year since. An essential test criterion for an importer is the seamless documentation and impeccable traceability of the MSC goods. For fisheries, the strict MSC standard requires protection of resources and examines in detail the state of the fish population of a given species in a defined area. The second criterion is effective fisheries management that works towards sustainable fishing and strictly controls catches. The third test criterion is the impact of fishing on the ecosystem, which should be kept to a minimum. Only when all criteria are met does a fishery receive the MSC certificate. Since 2013, Otto Franck Import has also been involved in a project aimed at certifying Moroccan sardine fishing as an MSC fishery.

Download - MSC certificate

IFS Broker

The IFS Broker is a standardized method for the certification of quality management and is to be applied to all companies that mainly carry out trading activities. In particular, it is designed to guarantee the quality of food, the health of consumers and the quality level of suppliers. To this end, Otto Franck has been audited annually by independent certification bodies since 2010. Among other things, it was determined that the stipulated quality requirements for product traceability and transparency within the value chain were met.

Download - IFS Broker certificate

IFS Logistics

IFS Logistics is a standard for companies offering logistics services and covers all logistical activities such as loading and unloading, transport, handling and reselling. The implementation and application of defined quality and product safety management systems are checked using certification by qualified auditors of independent, accredited and approved certifying bodies. The objective, which has been confirmed to Otto Franck Import KG since 2010, is to ensure compatibility and transparency throughout the entire supply chain and to introduce a uniform evaluation system.

Download - IFS Logistics certificate

Friend of the Sea

Friend of the Sea (FOS) is an international non-profit and non-governmental organisation (NGO) and is committed to being a leading certification and labelling system for fish and seafood from sustainable fisheries. Certification is obtained through audits by independent organisations and ensures compliance with established criteria for sustainable fishing. For example, the FOS label guarantees the prevention of by-catches of endangered species (according to the IUCN Red List) and the exclusive use of fishing methods that do not affect the seabed. In addition, only species that are not overfished may be processed into certified products. Otto Franck received the label for tuna and sardines for the first time in 2013.

Download - FOS certificate

Dolphin Safe

The problem of unintentional high by-catches of dolphins during tuna fishing was already tackled in the early 1990s together with the Earth Island Institute and the Dolphin Safe Programme. Productions and fishing vessels are regularly inspected by employees of the Institute to ensure compliance with the regulations. Otto Franck Import has been involved in this programme with great commitment and financial investment from the very beginning and only imports Dolphin-Safe caught tuna. Since the launch of the programme, the unwanted by-catch of dolphins has been reduced by 98%.

Business Social Compliance Initiative

We require our suppliers and business partners to act in full compliance with all applicable national laws, regulations and requirements. Furthermore, we strive to support our suppliers in the implementation of social standards according to ILO and UN conventions. In 2012 we joined the FTA (Foreign Trade Association) and joined the Business Social Compliance Initiative (BSCI) in order to sustainably implement these requirements. In this way, Otto Franck Import undertakes to insist on the social standards laid down in the BSCI Code of Conduct along the production and process chain. These include fair pay for workers, a healthy and safe work environment and the right to organisational freedom. In doing so, we want to make our contribution to the fair treatment of all people involved in the production of goods we trade.

Autorized Economic Operator (AEO)

An Authorised Economic Operator has a special status: He is considered to be particularly reliable and trustworthy and can benefit from special advantages in the context of customs clearance. Increasing globalization and the changed international security situation have prompted the World Customs Organization (WCO) to create a global framework for modern and effective risk management in customs administrations with a "Framework of Standards to Secure and Facilitate Global Trade" (SAFE). The European Union transposed these security policy aspects into European law in April 2005 with the amendment of the Customs Code (Regulation (EC) No. 648/2005) and made them more concrete with the publication of the implementation regulations (Regulation (EC) No. 1875/2006) in December 2006. An essential element of this security initiative is the introduction of the Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) status.