INDICOFS / KNOWLEDGE GUIDE
A source-cited guide to people & institutions behind the scheme. Follow the details, then ask a question.
Coffee Board owns the scheme, administers Level 1 and approves certification bodies. Approved bodies assess and certify Levels 2–3; accreditation bodies assess the competence of those bodies. A farmer implements farm practices and keeps evidence; a collective also runs its management system and member checks. Dhivriddhi operates this independent educational guide and does not award INDICOFS certificates or represent the Board.
A CB must be legally accountable, structurally defined, independent and impartial, with integrity commitments, confidentiality and adequate liability/financial arrangements. It must manage competent personnel and the scheme’s certification process, agreements, complaints and appeals. Auditors need an agricultural-sciences degree, at least five years’ relevant experience, ISO 19011 auditing training and sustainable-agriculture knowledge. These are auditor qualifications—not qualifications a farmer must hold.
The organisation submits the prescribed signed application, documents and fee to the Board. After review, an assessment team is nominated, conflicts can be raised, and the office/system is assessed, normally over two person-days; an already accredited body may need less. Witness assessment may be required. Findings are discussed at closure and corrections reviewed before approval. Provisional approval lasts one year; formal ISO/IEC 17065 accreditation and Board approval are required within that period. Notify material changes promptly, report certificate statuses quarterly, and expect at least one witnessed audit. Extensions require a justified written request and assessment as the Board decides.
Additional rules supplement ISO/IEC 17065. Staff sign integrity/conduct commitments; gifts and inducements need controls. A legally enforceable client agreement covers access, ongoing compliance, accurate claims, mark use, observer/unannounced visits, permitted information exchange and disclosure of other certificates. Conflicts must be assessed continuously. Consulting, education and training related to the scheme are prohibited within the same CB legal entity. An auditor must not audit the same organisation for more than two consecutive years or assess their own work. A formally appointed impartiality committee has no operational responsibility.
The CB controls internal and outsourced competence; non-independent providers cannot be used, and outsourced work needs at least annual evaluation plus monitoring. Independent interpreters are needed when auditor and auditee or workers do not share a language. Audit reports identify parties, scope, criteria, objectives, team, dates, deviations, evidence, unresolved issues, changes, sampling limitations, recommendations, mark control, corrective effectiveness and regulatory checks. Give the client the final report and checklist; reviewers need technical competence. The CB retains certification decisions, publishes status and verification information, informs Board/AB of termination or suspension, and uses management-system Option A. The unusual record-retention wording is “five years” or the scheme/regulatory period, whichever is shorter; confirm its application.
Additional INDICOFS rules supplement ISO/IEC 17011:2017. ABs need integrity codes, independence, capacity limits, controls on accreditation marks and conflict management. Reporting to the Board is in English; requested translations are at the AB’s expense and English controls interpretation. Agreements allow Board direct assessments and observers. The AB cannot provide or be linked to scheme-related training/consulting; conflicted personnel are excluded and cannot assess their own work. Assessors need an agricultural degree, five years’ relevant experience, ISO 19011 training, domain knowledge and scheme training. Stakeholder feedback and financial governance require formal rules.
Outsourcing is limited to specified recognised ABs or specialist expertise; decisions cannot be outsourced, and subcontracted work cannot be subcontracted again. Review documents before office assessment, normally within one month of complete receipt. Assess decision locations and a square-root sample of key-activity sites, covering all over the cycle. Initial assessment includes documents, key offices and witnessing. Annual surveillance includes headquarters/20% of key offices and representative witnessing, with all key offices covered over five years and extra checks for risk. The AB retains all accreditation decisions and removes scheme scope if Board approval is withdrawn. Option A applies; competent internal auditors and records are required, with the scheme’s shorter-period retention wording preserved.
