Organic is a standard of production
It's important to understand that organic is a standard of production, not a guarantee of final product characteristics. For certification purposes, organic products are tested for contaminants only when there is reason to believe contamination has occurred. If tests show contamination in excess of 5% of the Environmental Protection Agency tolerance level for a particular substance (such as a pesticide), the crop cannot be sold as organic.
Buyers of organic products may require testing to satisfy their own purchasing specifications, however. Buyers of food-grade crops may test for GMO contamination, which may occur via use of non-organic seed, insufficient equipment cleanout or pollen drift. If contamination is found, the crop does not lose its organic certification, but the buyer may reject it.
Like all laws and regulations, the National Organic Program Standards are subject to change. To remain certified, you'll need to stay up to date on the regulations. Your certification agency should inform you of any changes.
The Organic System Plan is the central piece of your certification application. It should fully describe your farm's operational features, from production and marketing to recordkeeping and natural resource conservation.
After the application has been submitted and reviewed, the certification agency may have additional questions. When the application package is complete, an inspector will conduct the on-site inspection and submit a report to the certifying agency. If the report and the application are satisfactory, the agency will issue an organic certificate.
Organic certificates are not dated and technically do not expire, although they can be revoked. This is to avoid situations in which producers can't conduct business due to delays in inspection and renewal. Instead, each year you'll receive an addendum to your certificate listing specific organic crops to be grown and sold over a given period of time. Your Organic Farm Plan or Plan Update should cover all crops or livestock you intend to raise in a given year.
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New Farm Profile
It's possible to certify your operation in stages. You might find it makes sense to certify your greenhouses first and then your fields, or your home farm first and later your rental property. Many grain and livestock producers begin by certifying their cropland and later transition their animals.
Iowa farmers Ron and Maria Rosmann sold their first crop of certified organic soybeans in 1994 and had the rest of their crops certified two years later. Their beef animals were certified in 1998, followed in 2003 by their farrow- to-finish hog operation—the final piece of their 640-acre diversified organic farm.
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