Organic Certification
"Each production or handling operation or specified portion of a production or handling operation must be certified if it produces or handles crops, livestock, livestock products, or other agricultural products intended to be sold, labeled, or represented as "one hundred percent organic," "organic," or "made with organic (specified ingredients or food group(s))." (7 CFR 205.101, National Organic Program). The State of Washington has adopted the National Organic Program (NOP) as its organic food law. Operations that sell only directly to the consumer and have gross annual sales less than $5000 are exempt from certification but still must follow all the rules for certification (including recordkeeping) if they represent their product as "organic."
Many resources are available to help understand the certification process (see below). Any USDA accredited certifier can be used in any state. In Washington, the WSDA Organic Food Program certifies over 90% of the organic acres. Both WSDA and OMRI (Organic Materials Review Institute) maintain Brand Name Material Lists to help growers and processors choose inputs that are in compliance with the NOP.
WSU Publications
Organic Farming Compliance Handbook: A Resource Guide for Western Region Agricultural Professionals. Produced by UC Davis, OMRI, WSU, OSU, and NMSU as part of a SARE PDP grant. January 2005.
National Organic Agriculture Standards: What do they mean for you? Videostream of March 21, 2003 WSU Satellite broadcast.
Organic Livestock: Principles and Practices. Videostream of October 29, 2004 WSU Satellite broadcast
Organic Resource Manual. SARE Project EW–96.006 and WSDA Organic Food Program. 1999.
Resources
Organic Materials Review Institute
National Organic Program. Includes policies and updates, the new organic seal and its use, lists of organic certifiers, N.O.S.B. (National Organic Standards Board) members and updates, and resource links.
WSDA Organic Certification. The WSDA Organic Food Program protects consumers and supports the organic food industry by ensuring the integrity of organic food products through establishing organic standards and certifying organic producers, processors, and handlers. Provides technical information about organic food production and assists in the development of markets for the organic food industry.
Organic Crop Production Certification Fact Sheet
Organic Sector Organizations
California Certified Organic Farmers
Carolina Farm Stewardship Association
Florida Organic Growers and Consumers
International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM)
Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association
NASDA Policy Statement on Organic Agriculture. The National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) released a policy statement in September 2003 that supports organic certification, marketing of organic products, collection of organic production and marketing data, and supports USDA funding for organic research.
Northeast Organic and Sustainable Farmers Network. Sustainable Agriculture Network.
Northeast Organic Farming Association
Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association
Organic Crop Improvement Association
Organic Farming Research Foundation (OFRF). A non-profit foundation founded to sponsor research related to organic farming practices, to disseminate research results to organic farmers and to growers interested in adopting organic production systems, to educate the public and decision-makers about organic farming issues.
Organic Trade Association (OTA). The OTA is a national association representing the organic industry in Canada, the US, and Mexico. Contains links to government sites, fiber, organic organizations, market information, Canada, university sites, general organic agriculture information, certifiers, publications, and more.
Texas Organic Growers Association