Organic Certifier Action Alert on Final USDA
Organic Regulations

Aurora, NY March 25, 2001

Action Alert
Demeter Association Needs your Help Time is Running Out to Change
USDA's National Organic Program (NOP)

There is some confusion as to how Demeter Biodynamic® certification will
fare under the USDA final organic rule which was issued December 21, 2000,
will take effect now on April 21, 2001, and will become fully implemented
October 21, 2002.

It is a mistake to assume that Demeter Biodynamic certification stands
outside the rule. There are several reasons why this is a risky assumption.
For one, the present exclusion of Biodynamic and any other eco-label is
based on the interpretation of one man, Keith Jones, who is the director of
the NOP. Keith Jones will someday be replaced, and that replacement may
have a different interpretation, or Jones himself may change his mind.
Personal interpretation of the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (OFPA)
on which the final rule is based is a very tenuous foundation upon which to
build a business. Secondly, because Biodynamic agriculture is not well
known, many of our growers must use the word Oorganic' on their label in
order to sell their products. Additionally, some of our growers export to
Europe where Biodynamic is regulated under the European organic regulation.
And lastly, Demeter operates a purely organic program called Aurora
Certified Organic. All things considered, Demeter has to be concerned about
the final rule. Our concerns are mainly three-fold.

No additional standards. First, the final rule does not allow any organic
certifier to uphold standards that go beyond those of the USDA. The final
rule specifically states that a private certifier¹s seal may not be used to
indicate standards other than those of the USDA. The relevant section of
the rule is 205.501(b)(2). In one stroke the USDA forbids certifiers to
require additional standards and practices and preempts their private
registered trademarks (certifier¹s seals). There are issues here of
commercial free speech and intellectual property rights, both of which are
in jeopardy. From now on, no one can define organic, no one owns organic,
except the USDA.

This is tricky and confusing because while the USDA has exclusive right to
Oorganic¹, they are leaving the door open to many possible eco-labels, such
as Oorganic pasture fed¹, Oorganic no sodium nitrate¹, Oorganic meets EU
requirements¹, Oorganic IFOAM accredited¹ etc. etc. If this wide-open
interpretation stands, consumers will be bombarded by a plethora of
eco-labels. Each label will need to establish itself in the marketplace and
consumers will need to sort out a much more confusing array of claims than
ever existed with the single word Oorganic¹ which was the reason for OFPA in
the first place. The solution is for the USDA to abandon its Ono additional
standards¹ interpretation of the OFPA. We believe the US Senate report
accompanying passage of the OFPA in 1990 makes it clear that this narrow
interpretation was not intended.

Conflict of Interest. The USDA has gone beyond customary interpretations of
conflict of interest rules and is requiring that certified growers and
handlers not participate in the governance of their organization. The
relevant section is 205.501(a)(11)(i). This section strikes at the heart of
many grassroots, farmer initiated certification organizations. The intent
is unclear, but the result will certainly be to destroy the very
organizations which have been the backbone of the organic community over the
last decades. Practically all certifiers have built-in conflict of interest
disclosure policies which give adequate protection. These policies meet
international accreditation requirements. To deny certifiers the ability to
have these committed individuals on our boards denies us access to the most
knowledgeable people.

Compost rules. The USDA has come up with an unworkable standard for farm
compost making. They sprung this on us in the final rule without the
opportunity for public comment. The rule requires at least fifteen days of
excessively high temperatures with required turning every 3 days. This will
drastically reduce the value of any farm generated manure, not to mention
that the required temperatures and turning schedule cannot be achieved by
farmers and cannot be verified or enforced by the certifier. The relevant
section is 205.203(c)(2)(iii).

Many other things need changing, but these are our Big Three.

What you can do. An apparent oversight by the USDA NOP staff has given us
additional time to press our case, but time runs out April 21. Please
immediately write to the people listed below. Your letter can be short and
simple. Refer to the relevant sections. Ask that the NOP final rule be
changed (ask this of Secretary Veneman) or sent back to the USDA for
revision (ask this of Congress). Ask of your Congressman that the OFPA be
repealed or that the NOP not be funded if the USDA does not revise these
provisions.

Secretary of Agriculture Ann Veneman
USDA
14th and Independence Ave SW
Washington, DC 20250.
Or email to agsec@usda.gov.

Your Congressman
The Honorable _______
US House of Representatives,
Washington, DC, 20515

Your Senator
Dirken or Russell Bldg or Senate office building if you
don¹t know,
Washington, DC 20510

Send a copy to
President Bush
Whitehouse
Washington, D.C.
or email to president@whitehouse.gov

Your help is needed and may make a significant difference in the future of
organic agriculture in the U.S.

Demeter Association, Inc.
Britt Rd, Aurora, NY 13026
Ph 315 364 5617, FAX 315 364 5224
email demeter@baldcom.net
Demeter Association has been certifying Biodynamic and organic agriculture
since 1984.