The Organic Trade Association has renewed its pending lawsuit to defend the critical role of the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) in shaping organic policy—particularly in the development and revision of organic standards.
At the heart of the revised complaint is USDA’s decision in 2018 to rescind the Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices (OLPP) rule without consulting the NOSB. Finalized after more than a decade of NOSB recommendations, public hearings, and stakeholder input, the OLPP rule was withdrawn without meaningful consultation with the NOSB—a clear departure from both long-standing precedent and the intent of the Organic Foods Production Act (OFPA).
While USDA later finalized a revised regulation—the Organic Livestock and Poultry Standards (OLPS) rule—it again bypassed NOSB consultation. Most recently, USDA withdrew the Market Development Final Rule for Pet Food and Mushrooms without NOSB engagement, despite both sectors having clear stakeholder support and alignment with the administration’s priorities of streamlining regulation and supporting U.S. agriculture.
The NOSB was established by Congress to ensure transparency, stakeholder input, and consistency in organic rulemaking. Meaningful consultation is not only required by law—it helps protect consumer trust in the USDA organic seal and ensures organic standards reflect the values of the organic community.
OTA’s renewed complaint seeks to restore and reinforce the integrity of this consultative process at the heart of the organic program.