Standards Board

The Soil Association's elected Council appoints Standards Board members, with the aim of ensuring a representative spread of appropriate expertise on the board. It meets around three times per year.

The Standards Board is responsible to the Council for upholding organic principles in the Soil Association standards. It does this by overseeing their development and maintenance. It works in conjunction with the standards committees who provide the expert, technical input. The charity's standards department provides the administration and management for the process. The Standards Board also guides the strategic direction of the standards department and agrees the annual work programme of standards development.

Issues that have arisen in recent meetings

• Soil Association Strategy
• Sodium lauryl sulphate
• Ethical trade
• Food for Life Catering Mark
• Protected Cropping standards

Current board members and their expertise:

• Sam Clarke: independent Chair of the Standards Board
• Mike Brook: Deputy Chair, Health Products Standards Committee
• William Lana: Textiles Standards and Trade Group Chair and Organic Trade Board representative
• Graeme Matravers: Farmer and Grower Board Chair and licensee
• Lynette Sinclair: Processing Standards Committee chair
• Simon Wright: Ethical Trade Standards Committee Chair,
• John Newman: Agriculture Standards Committee Chair and licensee - farmer
• Jill Vaughan: Horticulture Standards Committee Chair, licensee - grower
• Rebecca Speight: Catering Mark Standards Committee Chair
• Vacant: Aquaculture Standards Committee Chair
• Ian Bretman: lay member
• Isobel Collyer: lay member
• Alistair Cruickshank: lay member
• Annabel Allot: Soil Association Council representative
• Rob Haward: grower representative and licensee - grower

The Standards Board met on 19th October in Bristol.