INSIDE ORGANICS PHOTO: LIZ GRAZNAK AT HER FARM, HAPPY HOLLOW FARM, MONITEAU COUNTY, MO.
by LORI STERN
COMMITTED TO ORGANIC: DOING MORE THAN GROWING VEGETABLES A CONVERSATION WITH LIZ GRAZNAK, 2021 FARMER OF THE YEAR AND NEW NOSB MEMBER
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he National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) is a critical component in implementation of the Organic Food Production Act passed as part of the 1990 Farm Bill. The act was created to establish uniform and consistent standards for agricultural foods labeled as “organic”. It authorized a new USDA National Organic Program (NOP) for this purpose. In addition, the NOP oversees mandatory certification of organic production. A critical piece of ensuring that organic standards respond and evolve with new agricultural technology, growing markets, and environmental changes, was the establishment of the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB). This board, made up of 15 volunteer board members, advises the Secretary of Agriculture in setting the National Organic Program standards. Only producers who meet standards set by the NOP, verified by an independent and certified inspector, may label their products as “USDA Certified Organic.”
were top of mind for farmer advocates ahead of that 1990 Farm Bill.
The organic community is lucky to have several farmers still actively farming, teaching, speaking, and working on agricultural organization boards that remember the battle for more consistency nationwide. They were there as this process was designed and molded to fit within federal policies around advisory boards and rulemaking. Similar to today, the necessity for representation and transparency in a process that advises on agricultural rules and principles
The NOSB membership is also established by law. Of the 15 volunteer members, four must be organic farmers/growers, three environmental/resource conservationists, three consumer/ public interest representatives, two organic handlers/ processors, one retailer, one scientist (toxicology, ecology, or biochemistry), and one USDA-accredited certifying agent. Each NOSB member is appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture for a five-year term.
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The USDA Organic seal has come to represent production methods, that in the mind of the consumer, benefit animal, human, and planet health. And as concerns about climate and the food system grow louder, the commitment to maintain organic program integrity and purpose also grows. Similar to other hard-fought political battles of over thirty years ago, farmers and eaters today do not know what it was like to make conscientious food purchasing choices without the benefit of a USDA certified organic label. Now we all have the benefit of a process for achieving certification that is clear – spelling out allowed production practices, whether you farm in California, Vermont, or somewhere in between.
