The Mediterranean Institute for Certification, Istituto Mediterraneo di Certificazione (IMC) was established in 1995 as a certification body specialising in the certification of organic farming products on the initiative of the Organic Farming Association of the Region Marche, Associazione Marchigiana Agricoltura Biologica (AMAB). AMAB decided thus to separate clearly its control and certification activities carried so far as a Control Body acknowledged by the ministry of Agriculture and forestry with the ministerial decree D.M. MAF 17914/GL774 issued on 31/12/92.

In December 1996 IMC obtained the acknowledgement of the Ministry for Agriculture, Food and Forestry Resources with ministerial decree MiRAAF # 9697172, issued on 18/12/96 and published on the Italian Republic Gazette # 19 dated January 24th 1997. From that moment on, IMC started operating inheriting AMAB experience in the field of certification and absorbing in its control and certification system the companies that AMAB had so far controlled.

Today IMC includes more than 5500 companies within its control system and it has over ten years experience in the field of organic farming. IMC enhanced this experience extending its scope both geographically, reaching several countries in the Mediterranean, and as to activities relating to organic certification, that is environmental certification, ethic certification, quality system certification and training activities

Our main objective is contributing to spreading a culture of quality in the field of agriculture and agro-food, and to provide a widely reliable certification system to the market, ensuring perfect correspondence of products to requirements declared. IMC thus aims at supporting consumers granting safety that is increasingly required in the food sector.

IMC obtained important acknowledgements concerning its activity:

• it is authorised to the control and certification of organic farming by the Ministerial Decree DM MiRAAF # 9697172 dated 18/16/96;
• it is authorised to the control and certification of D.O.P. and I.G.P. (Protected Origin denomination and Geographical Indication of Conformity) by D.M dated 16/11/1999;
• it is accredited to Sincert with certification # 042B for the certification of products from organic farming in compliance with UNI CEI EN norm # 45011.

IMC carries out certification and training activities only and does not, as established in its statutes, provide any form of consulting service, in order to ensure the utmost independence and non-committal as to companies undergoing its control and certification system.