Program Details

IASC Certification Program

Building on a testing concept designed by member companies, the IASC developed the certification program to allow aloe growers, processors and manufacturers to submit their facilities and products to an audit program and series of rigorous tests which, if they passed, would authorize them to display the IASC Certification Seal on all products and marketing materials.  Companies who use the IASC Seal of Certification on their products and in their literature are assuring their customers that the company represents:

  • Truth in labeling of aloe vera products.
  • The quantity of aloe vera in the product meets IASC aloe vera content requirements.
  • The quality and purity of aloe vera in the product meets IASC standards.
  • The aloe vera used in the products comes from a certified source.

The IASC Certification Program is fully described in the Policies and Operational Procedures document and is available for review.

IASC Policies and Procedures

The IASC quality standard for aloe vera raw materials covers constituents such as polysaccharide content, isocitrate (also often called whole leaf marker or WLM), contaminants, and other constituents typically found within the botanical.

IASC Aloe vera Quality Standard

Once certified, product marketers are allowed to use the IASC Seal on their products and in advertising, etc. Use of the IASC Seal is described in the document below.

IASC Certification Mark Authority and License to Use

 

Facility Certification Requirements

Companies with manufacturing operations, whether contract or otherwise, are encouraged to obtain IASC Facility Certification. Those companies who utilize contract manufacturers should also encourage their manufacturing partners to become certified in order to defray associated costs, as this will eliminate travel and associated fees, such as an auditor’s travel to the facility each time a new product is to be certified.
 
Once a facility is certified, individual products manufactured there do not require an on‐site inspection by an IASC authorized auditor. Companies utilizing certified facilities are still required to pay all established fees for individual product certification, and submit the necessary samples, labels, literature, etc., associated with individual product certification. However, as noted prior, auditor travel and related expenses are eliminated.
 
Facility certification can be obtained in two ways: by on‐site inspection performed by an authorized IASC auditor or by a correspondence audit (available to facilities that maintain current, IASC approved 3rd party certifications as well as meeting all other applicable requirements).
 
Facility recertification must be completed every 3 years.

Product Certification Requirements

Three different methods are available for obtaining IASC certification for products: On‐site inspection, certification of products that are manufactured at a certified facility, and products that are currently certified but sold under different labels (duplicate labels).
 
The first method involves an on‐site inspection by an IASC auditor. The auditor will observe the manufacturing process for a given product's production run from start to finish. For tablets and capsules, if these processes are completed at a separate facility, the auditor will also travel to and observe those facility processes as well.
 
The second is for products manufactured at a facility that has already been certified by IASC. For these products, applicants need to verify their products are manufactured at a certified facility and submit the completed application along with the certification fees, documents and required samples.
 
The third method of certification is for products that are currently certified but are sold under different labels, termed “duplicate labels”– meaning those products that are manufactured for different labeling, but maintain the same exact formulation (preservatives can differ).
 
Product recertification is required on an annual basis.