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Secretary.
The Secretary of Agriculture or a representative to whom authority has been delegated to act in the Secretary's stead. (NOP definition)
 

Sewage sludge.
A solid, semisolid, or liquid residue generated during the treatment of domestic sewage in a treatment works. Sewage sludge includes but is not limited to: domestic septage; scum or solids removed in primary, secondary, or advanced wastewater treatment processes; and a material derived from sewage sludge. Sewage sludge does not include ash generated during the firing of sewage sludge in a sewage sludge incinerator or grit and screenings generated during preliminary treatment of domestic sewage in a treatment works. (NOP definition)
 

Slaughter stock.
Any animal that is intended to be slaughtered for consumption by humans or other animals. (NOP definition)

Soil aggregates.
The building blocks formed when soil minerals and organic matter are bound together.

Soil and water quality.
Observable indicators of the physical, chemical, or biological condition of soil and water, including the presence of environmental contaminants. (NOP definition)

Soil water.
Water suspended in the soil, namely the region from which water is discharged by plant transpiration and evaporation.

Somatic cell count (SCC).
A measure of milk quality based on the level of white blood cells present in the milk. A high SCC (generally expressed in 100,000s of cells per milliliter) can indicate mastitis. While the NOP Standards do not set a maximum SCC level for organic milk, most organic milk buyers set their own maximum and offer premiums for milk testing at lower levels.

Split operation.
An operation that produces or handles both organic and nonorganic agricultural products. (NOP definition)

State.
Any of the several States of the United States of America, its territories, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. (NOP definition)

State certifying agent.
A certifying agent accredited by the Secretary under the National Organic Program and operated by the State for the purposes of certifying organic production and handling operations in the State. (NOP definition)

State organic program (SOP).
A State program that meets the requirements of section 6506 of the Act, is approved by the Secretary, and is designed to ensure that a product that is sold or labeled as organically produced under the Act is produced and handled using organic methods. (NOP definition)

State organic program's governing State official.
The chief executive official of a State or, in the case of a State that provides for the statewide election of an official to be responsible solely for the administration of the agricultural operations of the State, such official who administers a State organic certification program. (NOP definition)

Strip cropping.
A method of farming employing alternating strips of closely sown crops (usually small grains) with strips of row crops, used when a slope is too steep or long to prevent soil erosion.

Subsoiling.
A method of deep plowing used to break up compacted subsoil, or hardpan, produced by many conventional tillage methods.

Synthetic.

A substance that is formulated or manufactured by a chemical process or by a process that chemically changes a substance extracted from naturally occurring plant, animal, or mineral sources, except that such term shall not apply to substances created by naturally occurring biological processes. (NOP definition)