Reversal of Fortunes: Organic Feed Standard Reinstated

May 7, 2003

Hardly six months old, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's organic label has already faced several challenges. One of the label's first setbacks, however, has been recently reversed with the stroke of a pen.

On April 16, President George W. Bush signed a supplemental appropriations bill into law which included an amendment to overturn an earlier piece of legislation that weakened the organic standards. In January, Congress had passed the fiscal year 2003 appropriations bill which featured a last-minute rider that allowed less-than-scrupulous producers to feed their animals grain laden with pesticides and still receive USDA organic certification. (The producers could use conventional feed only if the organic feed cost twice as much.)

The surreptitious provision, once it became known, immediately sent a seismic shock wave through the organic community. But through the actions of concerned consumers and activist organizations, both the U.S. Senate and the House overwhelmingly supported the new bipartisan amendment, dubbed the Organic Restoration Act. In all, 71 Senators signed on to support the amendment (introduced by Sen. Patrick J. Leahy, D-VT) and more than 100 Representatives co-sponsored the House version (introduced by Rep. Sam Farr, D-CA).

Now, 100% organic feed must be provided to livestock and poultry for the meat products to be considered legally organic. This means that no antibiotics, hormones, pesticides, or other non-approved feedstuffs can be added to the animal rations. All grains, hay, and forage must come from certified organic farms.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the original rider passed in January had "threatened to cut demand for organic meat and reduce the incentive for farmers to grow organic feed." Which was coming at a time when the organic market "is the fasting-growing part of the production agriculture sector," Dave Frederickson, president of the National Farmers Union (which represents about 300,000 farming families in the United States), told Greenwire in April.

"Ongoing success is dependent upon the integrity of organic standards," Frederickson added to Greenwire. "Weakening those standards would have a dramatically negative impact on organic production."

"The Humane Society of the United States supports the premise of sustainable organic agriculture since it includes livestock welfare as part of its animal husbandry standards," says Robert Hadad, director of farming systems for The HSUS Farm Animals and Sustainable Agriculture section. "However, still more work has to be done to make these regulations better."

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