The Fall 2022 Meeting of the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) took place in person on October 25-27 in Sacramento, CA.
The primary purpose of NOSB meetings is to provide an opportunity for stakeholders to give feedback on proposed NOSB recommendations and discussion items. The meetings also allow NOSB to receive updates from USDA’s National Organic Program (NOP) on issues pertaining to organic agriculture.
Blue
Livestock Subcommittee
Compliance, Accreditation, and Certification Subcommittee
- NOP Risk Mitigation Table
- Oversight Improvements to Deter Fraud – Acreage Reporting
- Organic and Climate Smart Agriculture
Handling Subcommittee
Materials Subcommittee
Crops Subcommittee
The NOSB Fall 2022 Meeting Agenda and Meeting Materials are available and the comment period is open. NOSB is requesting feedback on 9 proposals (vote), 3 discussion documents and 33 National List (sunset review) items. As a service to our members, we have created a 2-page At-A-Glance Summary so you can quickly identify topics that may impact your organic business. The deadline to submit written comments and/or sign up for oral comments is September 29, 2022.
Key topics OTA is planning to comment on*
CROPS
- *2024 Sunset Review – see below for list of substances and survey links (vote)
- Carbon Dioxide - petitioned for use in irrigation water treatment (vote)
- Potassium Hydroxide - petitioned for use in the production of liquid fish products (vote)
LIVESTOCK
- *2024 Sunset Review – see below for list of substances and survey links (vote)
PROCESSING AND HANDLING
- *2024 Sunset Review – see below for list of substances and survey links (vote)
- *Ion Exchange Filtration (recharge materials) – recommendation that recharge materials be listed on the National List (vote)
- *Ion Exchange Filtration (resins) – Requesting feedback on requiring ion exchange resins to be listed on the National List for allowance in organic processing (discussion)
- Peroxylactic Acid – petition to add as an antimicrobial processing aid for meat and poultry carcasses (vote)
- Phosphoric Acid – petition to expand use for extracting target molecules from seaweed (vote)
GENERAL
- *Organic and Climate Smart Agriculture – response to NOP memo addressing questions to help articulate why certified organic farming IS “climate-smart” (discussion)
- *2022 Research Priorities – annual list of research priorities for organic food and agriculture (vote)
- *NOP Risk Mitigation Table – Procedures for mitigating potential conflicts of interest in the NOP oversight and accreditation of certifiers (vote)
- *Oversight improvements to deter fraud: acreage reporting – Recommendation that NOP require certifiers to list harvested organic acres on the organic certificate by crop type and total acres (vote)
- *Oversight improvements to deter fraud: minimum reporting requirements – exploring universal use of auditing documents including mass-balance and traceback templates (discussion)
- Human Capital: NOSB Technical Support Initiative – Opportunities to obtain outside assistance for NOSB, as appropriate, to help alleviate some of the workload (vote)
This fall, NOSB will vote on whether to continue the allowance of the substances listed below that are scheduled for re-review prior to their sunset (expiration) date in 2024 from the National List. These National List inputs may not be renewed if new information indicates these substances are harmful to human health or the environment, are not necessary because natural or organic alternatives are available, and/or incompatible with organic production. (Learn more about the Sunset Review Process)
Do you use any of the substances listed below? It’s critical that organic stakeholders weigh in and explain whether these inputs are still necessary for organic production or if natural or organic alternatives are available. The feedback will inform the proposal and vote made at the Fall 2022 NOSB meeting.
Why should you care? The inputs listed below are fertilizers, pest control products, livestock treatments, processing aids, and ingredients currently allowed for use under certain restrictions by certified organic operations. In short, they are production inputs that help to grow and process organic products. It’s critical that NOSB hear from certified farmers and handlers during this open comment period on whether these inputs are essential and/or necessary for organic production and should remain on the National List, or whether there are other effective natural or organic alternatives available.
Inform our comments by completing our Sunset Surveys! To help facilitate the comment process, OTA has created a survey system for collecting feedback from certified organic farms and processors. Below are links to electronic surveys that can be used to submit feedback on each individual material currently under NOSB review. Each survey is anonymous and takes about five minutes to complete. The information collected will be passed along to NOSB via OTA’s comments.
LINKS TO SUNSET SURVEYS
Inputs Used in Crop Production:
- Herbicidal Soaps
- Biodegradable biobased mulch film
- Boric acid (structural pest control)
- Sticky traps/barriers
- Elemental sulfur (slug and snail bait)
- Copper for disease control (fixed copper, copper sulfate)
- Polyoxin D zinc salt (disease control
- Humic acids (plant/soil amendment
- Micronutrients (boron, zinc, copper, iron, manganese, molybdenum, selenium, and cobalt)
- Vitamins C and E
- Squid byproducts (fertilizer)
- Lead salts (prohibited)
- Tobacco dust (prohibited)
Inputs Used in Livestock Production:
- Chlorhexidine (surgical antimicrobial; teat dip)
- Glucose (ketosis treatment)
- Tolazoline (sedative reversal)
- Copper sulfate (hoof treatment)
- Elemental sulfur (external pest control)
- Lidocaine (topical anesthetic)
Inputs Used in Processing and Handling:
- Attapulgite (clarifying aid)
- Bentonite (clarifying aid)
- Diatomaceous earth (filtering aid)
- Magnesium chloride (tofu coagulation; nutrient)
- Nitrogen (packaging, propellant)
- Sodium carbonate (leavener, pH regulator)
- Acidified sodium chlorite (sanitizer)
- Carbon dioxide (storage aid, carbonation)
- Sodium phosphates (dairy processing)
- Casings (for sausage)
- Pectin (gelling agent)
- Potassium acid tartrate (cream of tartar)
Members of the public may submit written comments and/or provide oral comments. The deadline to submit written comments is 11:59 p.m. ET, September 29, 2022.
Written comments may be submitted via Regulations.gov (Docket # AMS-NOP-22-0042).
Members of the public may also sign up for a 3-minute oral comment slot using this form by 11:59 p.m. ET, September 29, 2022. Oral comments may be provided on either Oct. 18 or 20.
NOSB public comment webinars and meeting days are free and open to the public. Registration is not required unless you wish to provide public comment.
Watch/Listen to the public comment webinars on Oct 18 & 20, 2022
- Public Comment Webinar Day 1: Tuesday, October 18 from Noon - 5:00 pm Eastern
- Public Comment Webinar Day 2: Thursday, October 20 from Noon - 5:00 pm Eastern
(Link to the webinar to come in early October)
Watch/Listen to the public meeting on Oct 25-27, 2022:
- NOSB Public Meeting Day 1: Tuesday, October 25 from 8:30 am - 5:00 pm Pacific
- NOSB Public Meeting Day 2: Wednesday, October 26 from 8:30 am - 5:00 pm Pacific
- NOSB Public Meeting Day 3: Thursday, October 27 from 8:30 am - 5:00 pm Pacific
(Link to the public meeting to come in early October)
The National Organic Standards Board was created through the Organic Foods Production Act, a sub-section of the 1990 Farm Bill. The Board is charged with the task of assisting the Secretary of Agriculture on which substances should be allowed or prohibited in organic farming and processing. The Board also advises the Secretary on other aspects of the organic regulations. This 15-person citizen advisory board brings together volunteers from around the United States. It is made up of four farmers/growers, two handlers/processors, one retailer, one scientist, three consumer/public interest advocates, three environmentalists, and one USDA accredited certifying agent.