Inspection organisation for the organic sector Skal has made considerable progress in recent years, but it is still not the organisation it should be. Efficiency needs to improve, as does cost control, while the organisation also needs to put more energy into building knowledge, particularly about what its powers are and are not. These are some of the (literal) findings from an evaluation that the AnderssonElffersFelix (AEF) agency carried out at Skal.
The evaluation looked at the functioning of the organization in the years 2018 to 2022. The research was commissioned by the Ministry of LVVN. One of the reasons seems to be an internal letter from the European Commission expressing concerns about Skal's independence. This is at least mentioned in the report. The letter came after an audit in 2019.
According to AEF, good steps have been taken in recent years towards a more independent Skal, but the organization is not there yet. It is desirable to make a transition in the coming years from a private organization to an independent administrative body (zbo), which is then also better connected to LVVN, because things did not always go well there either, it is established.
Although there is criticism, AEF also sees mitigating circumstances at Skal. The number of tasks increased sharply in the years studied (because Skal did not have all of them in view at first), while the number of organic companies also increased. However, that increase of approximately 14% was much less strong than the increase in the workforce. That has more than doubled. Costs also increased sharply, but a point of concern is that income will not be able to keep pace with that, especially if Skal also has to take over a number of customs tasks. The Ministry of LVVN has been providing additional subsidies since 2020.
The report also shows that the number of organic companies has not grown very strongly in recent years. In 2023 there was even a peak of 515 dropouts, while the average is around 300 per year. Not all reasons for this were mentioned, but many smaller companies in particular are struggling with Skal's inspection costs, which they believe are disproportionate. Something has already been done about this, but according to many companies not enough. This criticism supports AEF's observation that efficiency is not always a priority at Skal.