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BioC Connection

 

1. What is BioC?

BioC is a German-based database that aggregates organic certificates from multiple certification bodies.

It mainly applies to the German market and related organic standards.

BioC includes certificates from:

  • Biokreis
  • Bioland
  • Biopark
  • Demeter
  • ECOLAND
  • ECOVIN
  • Gäa
  • Naturland
  • Verbund Ökohöfe

BioC serves as a central source for verified organic certification data across these standards.

Please note: BioC may also contain TRACES certificates. However, since Simvia offers a dedicated native TRACES connection, TRACES certificates are not retrieved via the BioC connection. For TRACES data, please use the separate TRACES connection.

2. What can you do with BioC?

By connecting BioC to Simvia, you can:

  • Automatically retrieve organic certificates
  • View certificate status for connected organisations
  • Store expired certificates for historical tracking
  • Monitor certificate changes
  • Reduce manual document collection

This supports more reliable and efficient organic compliance management.

3. How to set up the BioC connection

Setting up BioC consists of two required parts:

Part 1 – Obtain a BioC account and API key

To use the BioC connection, you must have an official BioC account.

BioC charges €75 per year for database and API access.

This subscription is managed directly with BioC.

Once you have an account:

  1. Log in to your BioC account
  2. Go to your account settings
  3. Generate an API key

The API key is required to connect BioC to Simvia.

Part 2 – Connect BioC in Simvia (one-time setup)

This only needs to be done once per account.

  1. Go to Company settings
  2. Open Connections
  3. Select Databases → BioC
  4. Enter your BioC API key
  5. Confirm the connection

Once connected, Simvia can retrieve certificate data automatically.

Part 3 – Add the BioC identifier to organisations

To retrieve certificate data, each organisation must have a valid:

BioC Operator ID

You must add this identifier to:

  • All existing organisations you want BioC data for
  • All newly created organisations

To add the identifier:

  1. Open the organisation in Simvia
  2. Go to Unique identifiers
  3. Add BioC Operator ID
  4. Enter the correct identifier
  5. Save

Without a valid BioC Operator ID, no certificate data can be retrieved for that organisation.

4. Where to find the identifier

BioC uses the BioC Operator ID to identify certified organisations.

This identifier:

  • Is assigned within the BioC system
  • Can be found in your BioC account
  • May also appear on the certificate itself

If needed, you can search directly in the BioC database.

5. How data is retrieved

After:

  • The BioC database is connected, and
  • The organisation exists in the BioC system

Simvia will automatically retrieve available certificate data.

The BioC sync runs daily at 00:00, meaning new or updated certificate data is refreshed automatically.

No manual request is required.

6. What data is retrieved

When available, Simvia retrieves:

  • Certificate document
  • Certificate status
  • Validity dates
  • Operator information
  • Certified products

Certified products can be viewed in the organisation’s Connections tab.

Expired certificates remain stored for versioning and historical compliance tracking.

7. How to access and use the data

Retrieved BioC data can be found in:

  • The organisation’s Connections page
  • Documents → Supplier documents

You can use this data to:

  • Verify organic certification validity
  • Track expiration dates
  • Maintain audit-ready documentation
  • Monitor status changes

8. BioC Monitoring (Optional)

In addition to retrieving certificates, you can enable BioC Monitoring.

When monitoring is enabled, you will receive email notifications when:

  • A certificate expires
  • A certificate status changes

This helps you stay proactively informed about certification changes without manually checking the system.

How to enable BioC Monitoring

BioC Monitoring can be activated from the Connection Settings page.

To enable monitoring:

  1. Go to Company settings
  2. Open Connections
  3. Select Databases → BioC
  4. Open the Connection Settings
  5. Enable Monitoring
  6. Save your changes

Once activated, email notifications will be sent automatically when certificate updates occur.

9. Important to know

  • A valid BioC subscription is required
  • The API key only needs to be configured once per account
  • Data is refreshed daily at 00:00
  • Only certificates available in the BioC database can be retrieved
  • Data availability depends on BioC’s maintained records
  • BioC Monitoring comes at additional cost
  • Monitoring must be activated separately from the standard BioC connection
  • Notifications depend on updates provided by BioC

If certificates are missing or unclear, they should be verified directly with BioC or the relevant certification body.