Members at Work

The Organic Trade Association (OTA) is a longstanding advocate for increasing federal funding for organic transition to increase organic acreage and production and to strengthen the domestic supply chain.

In today’s politically charged environment engaging in public policy seems more like a contact sport than an exercise in civic dialogue. I’ve done it; you’ve done it – turned off the TV, changed the radio station, or avoided social media altogether because you’re exhausted and frustrated by the polarizing and fractured state of political affairs. 

For more than 6 decades, The Grain Place farm in central Nebraska has shown the way for organic grains production in the “Cornhusker” state and the Midwest and far beyond. Three generations of the Vetter family – dedicated to growing food and raising livestock in an environmentally friendly and sustainable way – have inspired and mentored countless numbers of farmers, agricultural professionals and food industry experts to work towards a healthier food production system.

For organic coffee roaster Candy Schibli, a cup of coffee isn’t just a cup of coffee. It represents a ritual savored by people around the world and a healthy spark for greater mental and physical potential. And in Schilbi’s case, a product produced sustainably and organically by mostly small farmers who are women of color.  

Helping people become healthy naturally and organically is in Dr. Dana Nettles’s DNA. Born into a family with a long legacy of healing and close ties to nature, and raised by parents who were a physician and a nurse, Dr. Nettles grew up respecting and learning the healing powers of nature and wanting to share that knowledge with others in their journeys to health. 

Last week, the Organic Trade Association gathered with organic businesses from across the supply chain, coalition partners, scientists, advocates and policymakers in the nation’s capital for Organic Week 2023. Leaders in organic farming, business and science discussed complex organic issues including plastics in the supply chain, cultivating diversity in the sector, and projects to maximize the industry’s climate benefits.

What can you do to protect your business from organic fraud?

The success of the organic sector relies entirely on consumer trust in the USDA organic seal. Supply chains compromised due to fraud can erode consumer trust in the integrity of the organic brand and hurt organic farmers everywhere. It is critical that every organic business has a system in place that will prevent fraud and support the promise of providing organic products that people can trust.

In May 2021, OTA established a Diversity & Entrepreneurship Program and Fund as part of its Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) commitment. The Diversity & Entrepreneurship Program and Fund provides (among other benefits) a two-year Trade Membership with voting rights to Organic Trade Association for businesses that are 51 percent owned and controlled by under-represented groups including Black, Hispanic/Latinx, Native American/Indigenous American/Alaska Native, Pacific Islander, and women.

Organic supports climate resilience, economic security, and health equity. CCOF’s goal is to expand the benefits of organic to all of California by transitioning 30 percent of California’s agricultural land to organic by 2030. Currently, just under 10 percent of farmland in California is organic. To reach this target, we took a deep dive into the research on the benefits of organic and how organic can be supported at the policy level. We developed nearly 40 recommendations in our Roadmap to an Organic California: Policy Report. And now, we’re enacting these recommendations.

Each week, OTA’s Accounting Manager, Janet Martz, processes hundreds of financial and administrative transactions for the organization. However, she never had the opportunity to meaningfully engage with members or OTA’s programming until the establishment of the Diversity Council.