Bronze
The entry level. At least 10% of the farm's food or fiber land, or revenue, is certified.
What Is Regenerative Organic Certified?
Regenerative Organic Certified, or ROC, is a farm certification run by the nonprofit Regenerative Organic Alliance. A farm has to hold USDA Organic certification, or an equivalent the USDA recognizes, before it can apply. ROC then adds requirements in three areas: soil health, animal welfare, and farmer and worker fairness.
What ROC checks
- USDA Organic certification, or a USDA-recognized equivalent, as the entry requirement
- Soil health and land management practices, like crop rotation
- Animal welfare, for farms that raise animals, including animals raised for fiber
- Fair treatment of farmers and workers, checked through a social audit or an approved social certification
- No GMO seed or inputs, including gene-edited ones
What ROC doesn’t cover
- Dyeing and finishing. The framework covers farms, transport and some processing, and it has no rules for textile dyes or finishes.
- Fiber from land that isn't certified. Organic and regenerative organic claims can only be made about products grown on certified land.
- Products that only say "regenerative." The full ROC seal is the claim backed by this audit.
The three ROC levels
Every ROC seal shows a level. Under the current framework (version 4.1), the level reflects how much of the farm's food or fiber land, or revenue, is certified, and how many practices are required.
Silver
At least 50% of the farm's land or revenue is certified, and more practices become required.
Gold
All of the farm's food or fiber land is certified. The highest level.
How to check a ROC certificate
The Regenerative Organic Alliance keeps a public directory of certified brands and products, with a cotton category.
- Search the brand. Look up the brand or product in the Brand & Product Directory, or filter by cotton.
- Check the level. Make sure the listing matches the product you're buying. When a product mixes ingredients from different levels, it can only claim the lower one.
ROC questions
Is Regenerative Organic Certified the same as organic?
Every ROC farm is certified organic first. ROC adds soil health, animal welfare and farmworker fairness requirements on top of the USDA organic rules.
Is there Regenerative Organic Certified cotton clothing?
Yes. The Alliance's directory has a cotton category, and it lists apparel brands with certified cotton pieces, like sweatshirts, T-shirts and sleepwear.
How often are ROC farms audited?
Every year. ROC requires an annual recertification audit at the Bronze, Silver and Gold levels.