Since October 2002, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) requires organic farms to undergo an annual inspection by a licensed independent third-party certifier to determine if producers are operating under the uniform organic standard created by the National Organic Program (NOP).
For crops, certification occurs after there have been no prohibited substances applied to the land for at least three years before the harvest of an organic crop. For livestock, animals for slaughter should be raised under organic conditions from at least the first third of gestation.
Both crop and livestock producers need to have a plan for production and handling as well as facilities that is approved by a certifier. Producers who sell less than $5,000 per year of organic farm products do not have to be inspected, but they must still follow organic practices.
A list of certification agencies is available at the National Organic Program Web site. There are record keeping and on-site inspections (both to be certified and annually to maintain certification). The farmer must pay certification costs, which will vary by certification agency.
For more information, go to:National Organic Program.
