FAQ

There is a wide range of potential risks in organic chains. It is challenging to apply relative weights to these risks, as their impacts may differ substantially amongst regions and/or products. This is most likely the reason why nobody has yet come up with a uniform, scientific proven, model for risk assessment in organic agriculture.

The Agricultural Economics Research Institute of Wageningen UR (LEI) has developed a model for risk analysis for the Dutch Phytosanitary Agency. This Chain Risk Model (CRM) calculates the costs and financial impact of various alternative measures against pests. It appears to be the first and only model with scientific backing and can be adapted to assess risks in organic certification.

The Chain Risk Model can be used to:
- Allocate problems of contamination; during which stage of the production or supply chain do risks occur?
- Identify which measures, and the intensity of the measure to be taken, to avoid contamination.
- Decide which measures (or a combination of measures) to prevent contamination are cost-effective.
- Determine the sample size and intensity of the inspections.
- Deal with uncertainty. The CRM can be used to make sensitivity calculations.