The second draft of USDA’s proposed Organic Rule, released on March 7, takes the U.S. a giant step closer to having a national standard for organic product certification. It incorporates the groundswell of citizen and organic industry comments (275,000 of them) that were vehemently opposed to major portions of the first draft. In presenting the plan, Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman stated the uniform standard “is the most comprehensive and strongest organic standard in the world. I believe that is exactly what American consumers and organic farmers want.” The Union of Concerned Scientists notes this marks the first time the USDA responded to citizen concerns for a healthy food supply rather than defending its traditional agri-business constituency.
The Organic Rule sets consistent national standards for organic produce, animal products, processed foods, and, in the future, for fish. It covers the growing, processing and handling of products that can be labeled “organic.” It details the practices and substances that can be used.
Currently, organic food is certified by numerous private and state organizations, all with their own standards. One national standard will go a long way to mainstream the organic industry: it will facilitate citizen confidence in organic products, industry exports will increase because trading partners will no longer have to deal with multiple standards, and industry will have just one set of standards to meet in the U.S.
Details of the Organic Rule
First, the “dirty three” elements of the 1997 draft are eliminated. To be labeled “organic” a product must be free of genetically modified organisms, sewage sludge fertilizer, and irradiated products. Products will be labeled based on the amount of organic ingredients they contain:
* “100% Organic”: all organic ingredients
* “Organic Products”: a minimum of 95 percent organic material
* “Made with Organic Materials”: products that contain 50-95 percent organic content
* Processed products with less than 50 percent organic ingredients may indicate specific organic ingredients only on the information panel.
Only certain substances are allowed to be used in organic agriculture, and the rule lists them all. The list coincides with organic industry recommendations. Some of the other elements of the Organic Rule are:
* Land can be certified as organic when a minimum of three years has passed without input of prohibited substances.
* Pest management will be based on organic agriculture techniques such as crop rotation, physical and biological controls, natural fertilizers, and allowable synthetic materials.
* Non-organic seeds and planting stock are allowed only in certain prescribed situations.
* Animals will have access to the outdoors, will be fed 100 percent organic food, and will not be given antibiotics or hormones.
* Organic and non-organic products must be separated throughout the chain of custody.
Under the plan, the USDA will accredit state and private certifiers. In the last few months, the USDA responded to industry concerns and modified the plan such that for the next five years the USDA will pay for these groups to meet national certification requirements.
In addition to the 650 page plan, a document that provides a side-by-side comparison with the first draft, along with the Organic Trade Association’s (OTA) American Organic Standards will be available as of March 13.
Glickman expressed confidence that the plan would be approved this year, and implemented over the next 18 months. The public comment period extends over the next three months, until June 14. If there are no radical changes required, Glickman is prepared to authorize the revised standards. Rather than hold up the approval process which may place the plan in the hands of a new Administration, OTA indicates it will carefully consider which topics to take issue with. The OTA plan, for example, includes certification requirements for retailers that sell deli food as organic. The USDA standard exempts retailers.
The U.S. organic industry generated revenues of $6 billion in 1999; they are expected to jump to $13 billion by 2003. The organic farming sector is populated by mostly small farmers – currently about 12,000 nationwide and increasing by 12 percent a year.
Visit the USDA National Organic Program website: [sorry this link is no longer available]
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