Audit & Certification
OK Certification > Solution > Certification > OK renewable Solution: OK renewable Audit & Certification Solution: OK renewable OK Certification Center OK Certification Center Wingepark 41 3110 Rotselaar Belgium +32 2 532 29 11 Send email Wingepark 41 3110 Rotselaar Belgium OK Certification Center TÜV AUSTRIA is a Member in Good Standing of TIC Council \| TÜV (R) TÜV AUSTRIA Certification Scheme: OK compost HOME Accreditation All accreditations FAQ What is the difference between “OK compost INDUSTRIAL” and “OK compost HOME”? Products that are solely OK compost INDUSTRIAL-certified are those that compost only in industrial composting facilities (at temperatures between 55 to 60°C), so products that are solely OK compost INDUSTRIAL-certified should not go into the garden compost. Conversely, OK compost HOME refers to products that also compost at lower temperatures, so they can go into the compost heap in your garden at home, hence the title “HOME”. Is there any difference between “biodegradable” and “compostable”? People often get “biodegradable” and “compostable” mixed up but they do not mean the same thing. A biodegradable product may be broken down by microorganisms but this does not necessarily imply that the product can be converted into good quality compost. Biodegradability and compostability rely heavily on the environment where the product is broken down. As each environment (compost, soil, water, …) has different temperatures and microorganisms, the speed of the biodegradation process may vary from one site to another. For example, bioplastics which are biodegradable in an industrial composting plant (the most aggressive atmosphere regime) are not always biodegradable in water or soil, or even in a compost bin in the garden (owing to the lower temperatures). What tests are required to qualify for an OK compost INDUSTRIAL certificate? The European Norm about compostability of packaging (EN 13432) requires (besides a clear and detailed description of the product) 4 tests: test on biodegradation (chemical break down of the polymer of fibres) test on disintegration (physically falling apart of the product in small fragments) test on ecotoxicity (test if the composted product does not exert any negative effect on plants) test on heavy metals content NOTE – Biodegradation, ecotoxicity and heavy metal content are characteristics of the material, whereas disintegration is a characteristic of the material and shape (final product). "OK compost HOME is a certification scheme for products that are degradable in home composting. It is the basis of several standards." TÜV AUSTRIA Certification Scheme: OK compost HOME The concept of renewability is becoming increasingly crucial as industries and consumers alike seek to reduce their carbon footprint, especially the scope-3 emissions. Our ‘OK renewable’ certification addresses this need by ensuring that products meet stringent renewable carbon standards. This is what led the nova Institute to launch the Renewable Carbon Initiative (RCI) in 2020, one of the first actions of which was to set up a multi-sectoral “Labelling” working group in which we participated, in order to develop the renewable carbon share (RCS) concept. It is therefore quite natural that the RCI turned to us to implement the RCS concept through the “OK renewable” certification scheme. Renewable carbon entails all carbon sources that avoid or substitute the use of any additional fossil carbon from the geosphere. Renewable carbon can come from the biosphere (biomass), atmosphere (CO2) or technosphere (recycling) but not from the geosphere (fossil), creating a carbon circular economy between the biosphere, atmosphere or technosphere. OK renewable allows to combine these different sources into one single statement. A Renewable Carbon Share (RCS) of x% means that the proportion of mass containing Renewable Carbon is x% of the total carbon-containing mass (renewable-based) and/or the equivalent amount of feedstock of the mass containing fossil carbon has been replaced by feedstock containing Renewable Carbon in the production plant (renewable-attributed), as documented by established certificates. Focusing on the mass containing renewable carbon, rather than just renewable carbon, is necessary to allow for a fair inclusion of dedicated bio-based materials, such as PLA, where bio-based oxygen (included in the mass) also replaces fossil carbon. This would be lost if we only considered carbon. At first, 9 established underlying certification schemes have been selected : Biobased (NEN) DIN Geprüft (DIN Certco) Flustix recycled ISCC+ OK biobased & OK recycled (TÜV AUSTRIA) RecyClass RedCert2 RSB The project was then submitted to an Advisory Committee made up of stakeholders from RCI, nova Institute and TÜV Austria who met several times to validate the different stages of the development of the scheme, which was then tested on several case studies in order to verify its robustness. As with our other conformity marks, this logo clearly declares its scope, specifies who the certifier is, who is the holder (via the “S code”) and finally quantifies the renewable share. More Tags: Certification OK compost OK recycled Foodstuffs Sustainability Trade & Commerce Audit & Certification OKcert Related solutions from the same sector: Certification OK compost INDUSTRIAL Certification Show more OK biodegradable Certification Show more NEN BIO-BASED Certification Show more OK compost HOME Certification Show more All Solutions Discover more sectors: Foodstuffs Energy Health & Medicine Science & Research Sports & Fitness Leisure & Entertainment Electronics Construction & Real Estate IT & Security Transport & Traffic Industry Tourism Agriculture Trade & Commerce Sustainability Communications Technology Machinery Municipalities Automotive OK Certification Center +32 2 532 29 11 \| okcert@tuv-a.com
OK Certification Center +32 2 532 29 11 \| okcert@tuv-a.com

OK Certification > Solution > Certification > OK renewable

Solution: OK renewable

Audit & Certification

OK Certification Center

Wingepark 41 3110 Rotselaar Belgium

+32 2 532 29 11

Send email

TÜV AUSTRIA is a Member in Good Standing of TIC Council | TÜV (R)

TÜV AUSTRIA Certification Scheme: OK compost HOME

Accreditation

All accreditations

FAQ

What is the difference between “OK compost INDUSTRIAL” and “OK compost HOME”?

Products that are solely OK compost INDUSTRIAL-certified are those that compost only in industrial composting facilities (at temperatures between 55 to 60°C), so products that are solely OK compost INDUSTRIAL-certified should not go into the garden compost.

Conversely, OK compost HOME refers to products that also compost at lower temperatures, so they can go into the compost heap in your garden at home, hence the title “HOME”.

Is there any difference between “biodegradable” and “compostable”?

People often get “biodegradable” and “compostable” mixed up but they do not mean the same thing. A biodegradable product may be broken down by microorganisms but this does not necessarily imply that the product can be converted into good quality compost.
Biodegradability and compostability rely heavily on the environment where the product is broken down. As each environment (compost, soil, water, …) has different temperatures and microorganisms, the speed of the biodegradation process may vary from one site to another.
For example, bioplastics which are biodegradable in an industrial composting plant (the most aggressive atmosphere regime) are not always biodegradable in water or soil, or even in a compost bin in the garden (owing to the lower temperatures).

What tests are required to qualify for an OK compost INDUSTRIAL certificate?

The European Norm about compostability of packaging (EN 13432) requires (besides a clear and detailed description of the product) 4 tests:
test on biodegradation (chemical break down of the polymer of fibres)
test on disintegration (physically falling apart of the product in small fragments)
test on ecotoxicity (test if the composted product does not exert any negative effect on plants)
test on heavy metals content

NOTE – Biodegradation, ecotoxicity and heavy metal content are characteristics of the material, whereas disintegration is a characteristic of the material and shape (final product).

"OK compost HOME is a certification scheme for products that are degradable in home composting. It is the basis of several standards."

TÜV AUSTRIA Certification Scheme: OK compost HOME

The concept of renewability is becoming increasingly crucial as industries and consumers alike seek to reduce their carbon footprint, especially the scope-3 emissions. Our ‘OK renewable’ certification addresses this need by ensuring that products meet stringent renewable carbon standards.

This is what led the nova Institute to launch the Renewable Carbon Initiative (RCI) in 2020, one of the first actions of which was to set up a multi-sectoral “Labelling” working group in which we participated, in order to develop the renewable carbon share (RCS) concept. It is therefore quite natural that the RCI turned to us to implement the RCS concept through the “OK renewable” certification scheme.

Renewable carbon entails all carbon sources that avoid or substitute the use of any additional fossil carbon from the geosphere.

Renewable carbon can come from the biosphere (biomass), atmosphere (CO2) or technosphere (recycling) but not from the geosphere (fossil), creating a carbon circular economy between the biosphere, atmosphere or technosphere.

OK renewable allows to combine these different sources into one single statement.

A Renewable Carbon Share (RCS) of x% means that

the proportion of mass containing Renewable Carbon is x% of the total carbon-containing mass (renewable-based)

and/or

the equivalent amount of feedstock of the mass containing fossil carbon has been replaced by feedstock containing Renewable Carbon in the production plant (renewable-attributed),

as documented by established certificates.

Focusing on the mass containing renewable carbon, rather than just renewable carbon, is necessary to allow for a fair inclusion of dedicated bio-based materials, such as PLA, where bio-based oxygen (included in the mass) also replaces fossil carbon. This would be lost if we only considered carbon.

At first, 9 established underlying certification schemes have been selected :

Biobased (NEN)
DIN Geprüft (DIN Certco)
Flustix recycled
ISCC+
OK biobased & OK recycled (TÜV AUSTRIA)
RecyClass
RedCert2
RSB

The project was then submitted to an Advisory Committee made up of stakeholders from RCI, nova Institute and TÜV Austria who met several times to validate the different stages of the development of the scheme, which was then tested on several case studies in order to verify its robustness.

As with our other conformity marks, this logo clearly declares its scope, specifies who the certifier is, who is the holder (via the “S code”) and finally quantifies the renewable share.