Evaluation of Labels

Deutsch

How does the evaluation work?


For the Supply Cha!nge label check, we have selected the criteria that are particularly important in the areas of environment, social welfare, animal welfare and organization for an impactful label. We then evaluate how many of these criteria are taken into account by the labels.


While the first three areas are thematic, the fourth area includes criteria covering the structure of the label - that is, e.g. aspects such as the involvement of trade unions or associations, the nature and frequency of controls. It is of equal importance to all labels.

For the assessment of the labels we have formulated a set of 45 question with predefined answer possibilities:

"Includes the label criteria for pesticide reduction, e.g. through specifications for integrated production?"


There are three possible answers to this question:

• 
"No" - the seal of approval does not get a point
• 
"Yes - the seal of quality has guidelines for integrated production which should lead to a reduction of the pesticides used." The label is given one point.
• 
"Yes - the seal of approval excludes the use of chemical-synthetic pesticides."

The label is awarded 2 points.

The information which criteria are fulfilled by the individual labels can be accessed by clicking on the respective label logo.


The complete list of questions can be downloaded here (in English).

Our label check therefore assesses the criteria which are the base of the respective labels, and whether they contain sufficient management and control systems. What this approach cannot accomplish is a thorough statement on whether these criteria and processes are also applied and implemented in practice.


Traffic Lights

The traffic light rating of the label is intended to provide a quick overview of three categories. In order to arrive at a rating, we compare the achieved score of a label per category - if this is less than 1/3 of the achievable points, the label only has a "low aspiration" in this area. If it achieves between 33% and 55% of the points, the label is on the right track - but still has potential for improvement. It gets the rating "intermediate aspiration". If more than 55% of the points have been reached, the seal of quality in this area has a "high aspiration".


Some labels focus on ecological issues, some on social. For example, organic labels stand for high environmental standards, but focus less on social standards. It is important for consumers that it is made transparent, which issues the label actually deals with.