The Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (OFPA)
(Title 21 of Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990, codified at 7 U.S.C. ch. 94, 7 U.S.C. § 6501 et seq.) authorizes a National
Organic Program (NOP) to be administered by USDA's Agricultural
Marketing Service (AMS). The program will be based on federal regulations that define
standard organic farming practices and on a National List of acceptable organic
production inputs. Private and state certifiers will visit producers,
processors, and handlers to certify' that their operations abide by the standards.
Once certified, these operations may affix a label on their product stating
that it "Meets USDA Organic Requirements." It will be illegal for anyone to use the
word "organic" on a product if it does not meet the standards set in
the law and regulations. The regulations under the OFPA are intended to set
uniform minimum standards for organic production. However, states may adopt
additional requirements after review and approval by USDA. AMS will re-accredit
certifying agents every 5 years, maintain federal oversight to assure truth in
labeling, and provide assurance that imported organic products have been
produced under standards that are equivalent to the U.S. standards.
The act called for the establishment of a
15-member National
Organic Standards Board (NOSB) to "assist in the development of standards for substances
to be used in organic production" (i.e., the National List) and to
"provide recommendations to the Secretary regarding implementation"
of the act. Congress expected implementation to be complete and the program in
operation by October 1, 1993. However, the Board was hampered at the beginning
by a lack of funds, among other factors. Neither departmental nor appropriated
funds were available in FY1991; in FY1992 and FY1993, USDA made $120,000
available under the Federal Advisory Committee Act. Beginning in FY1994,
Congress appropriated funds for AMS's National Organic Program activities at
about $500,000 annually. The FY1999 Administration budget requests slightly
more than $1 million to assist the implementation of the new program. The OFPA
stipulates that the costs of the program, once fully operational, will be paid
for entirely by fees collected from producers, certifying agents, and handlers.
During the period from June 1994 to September
1996, the NOSB submitted its recommendations for national standards and the
National List to USDA's National Organic Program staff. The staff drafted the
proposed rule based on the Board's recommendations but not in complete
conformity with them. The proposed rule appeared in the Federal Register on
December 16, 1997. Because of the heavy response to the proposal, USDA extended
the comment period from mid-March through the end of April 1998.
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