24
Apr
Members of Congress Move to Support Organic Food Systems
(Beyond Pesticides, April 24, 2025) As the congressionally created National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) of organic stakeholders meets this week to receive comments from the public on the semi-annual review of standards and allowed and prohibited substances in production and processing, multiple members of Congress are moving to shore up the organic sector for farmers and consumers. (See testimony here.) The current 119th Congress has brought a wave of bipartisan legislation aimed at improving the U.S. food system, including organic standards and programs.
Organic advocates are pleased to see the introduction of a series of bills supporting organic, including the reintroduction of the Organic Science and Research Investment (OSRI) Act, S.1385, the New Producer Economic Security Act, S.1237, (previously Increasing Land, Security, and Opportunities (LASO) Act, H.R.3955, in 2023-24), and the newly-introduced Organic Imports Verification Act (OIVA), S.1398, among others.
OIVA, introduced by Senators Pete Ricketts (R-NE), Tina Smith (D-MN), and Tim Scott (R-SC), is intended to improve consumer confidence in imported organic goods with support for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Strengthening Organic Enforcement Rule. (See a joint press release by Senators Ricketts and Smith here.)
Amid federal funding freezes and cuts that business leaders say undermine small businesses and domestic supply chains, the Honor Farmer Contracts Act, S.1172/H.R.2396, has been introduced to ensure farmers get paid for previously signed contracts with the USDA.
In the face of uncertainty, congressional Democrats and some Republicans are supporting a $23 million budget for USDA’s National Organic Program that helps to oversee a $70 billion organic industry that includes American farmers and provides consumers with healthy food options.
Organic Science and Research Investment Act (OSRI)
Earlier this month, Senators John Fetterman (PA-D) and Sen. Adam Schiff (CA-D), reintroduced OSRI, S.1385, to ensure “organics research is prioritized at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and [increased] funding for research agencies and universities, [as well as ] provid[ing] much needed support to the organic farming industry,†according to Sen. Fetterman’s press release. The bill is co-sponsored by Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Tina Smith (D-MN), Peter Welch (D-VT), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Ron Wyden (D-OR), and Angus King (I-ME).
The core features of this legislation are laid out by OFRF in their press release:
- “Creating the Coordinating and Expanding Organic Research Initiative at the USDA to assess and efficiently expand the agency’s organic research portfolio.
- Increasing funding for the Organic Research and Extension Initiative (OREI) from its current budget of $50 million annually to $100 million by the end of the next Farm Bill.
- Formally authorizing the Organic Transition Research Program to support farmers transitioning to organic practices, and renaming the program to the Researching the Transition to Organic Program (RTOP).
- Doubling Farm Bill support for the Organic Production and Market Data Initiative to improve market transparency, help inform targeted market development investments, and improve risk management tools.
- Directing the USDA’s Economic Research Service to evaluate the full economic, ecological, and community impacts of organic agriculture.”
The USDA Economic Research Service has found that for every dollar invested in agricultural research, $20 is rewarded back to the U.S. economy. See a previous Daily News, The Growth of Organic Production and Supply Chains Emphasizes Importance to the Public, for the local, regional, and national impacts of organic supply chains in the United States. In this moment of federal funding freezes, with dozens of programs in jeopardy, Beyond Pesticides joins 80 other farms, businesses, and organizations to support the reintroduction of OSRI in a joint letter here. (See previous Actions in support of organic research from previous years here, here, here, and here.)
Unsurprisingly, a recent report by New York University researchers identified gaps in various agricultural support systems for organic farmers in a novel analysis, recommending an interagency collaboration through the proposed development of an “Organic Agent Corps.†This would establish permanent positions for experts in various states or regions who are familiar with crop insurance, Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP), and related programs, as well as organic certification. (See Daily News here.) Given the ramifications of staff freezes and cuts by the billionaire-led Department of Government Efficiency, advocates remain skeptical about any expansion of capacity at this point.
Organic Imports Verification Act (OIVA)
“Fraudulent organic imports hurt American farmers and degrade consumer trust. This must stop,â€Â says Senator Ricketts in a press release announcing this legislation. “By enhancing oversight and enforcing stricter controls, we can better safeguard U.S. organic farmers and maintain consumer trust in organic products. This bipartisan legislation levels the playing field for our domestic organic producers.â€
If passed, the Organic Imports Verification Act (OIVA) would require a protocol for residue testing on organic imports shipped in bulk and authorize USDA to stop the sale of the shipment because of their failure to meet the standards set in the Organic Foods Production Act. Beyond Pesticides has covered the importance of a rigorous regulatory framework to identify bad actors and ensure integrity in the system, as well as some notable examples of organic fraud and subsequent corrective actions. (See Daily News here, here, here, and here.)
Most in the organic sector see the passage of OIVA as critical to realizing the goals of the Biden-era Strengthening Organic Enforcement (SOE) Rule, which supports a crackdown on import verification and integrity through additional monitoring requirements for certifiers and producers, processors, and handlers up and down the supply chain. (See Daily News on European Union and U.S. changes to organic standards in 2024 here and here, respectively.)
New Producer Economic Security Act
“Land access is at the root of, and deeply tied to, many of the barriers farmers and ranchers face, including market access, access to operating capital, and day-to-day challenges such as changing weather patterns, mental health, and housing,†said Michelle Hughes, Co-Executive Director of the National Young Farmers Coalition, in a press release announcing this legislation. “The New Producer Economic Security Act comes at a time when farmers need us the most. The bill comprehensively addresses the greatest barriers young and beginning farmers face while elevating local leadership, securing our domestic food system, and delivering material benefits for new producers.â€
The sponsors of the legislation include Representatives Nikki Budzinski (D-IL), Zach Nunn (R-IA), Joe Courtney (D-CT), Don Davis (D-NC), Eric Sorenson (D-IL), Jill Tokuda (D-HI), and Gabe Vasquez (D-NM). This bill is a continuation of the previously introduced Increasing Land Access, Security, and Opportunities Act by the same cosponsors in an effort to build on the over $300 million in funds distributed through USDA’s Increasing Land Access, Capital, and Market Access Program made possible through the American Rescue Plan in 2021.
For further analysis on Farm Bill markers from the previous legislative session, see a 2023 op-ed written by senior policy and coalitions associate, Max Sano. While the aforementioned program’s future is unknown, as the Department reviews existing initiatives not codified into law, supporters of the bill are optimistic that these proposals would “be a meaningful opportunity to support young and beginning producers across the country with tangible outcomes for land access, retention, and transition.â€
Honor Farmer Contracts Act
In response to frozen USDA funds and breaches of contracts, Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) leads a cohort of seventeen Senators and eight U.S. Representatives to introduce the Honor Farmer Contracts Act. This legislation would have a fourfold impact:
- Unfreeze all funds and implement agreements and contracts;
- Pay all past due amounts owed to farmers per contractual obligations with the USDA;
- Prevent USDA from canceling a signed agreement or contract “unless the farmer or entity has failed to comply with the terms and conditions…â€; and
- Prevent closure of offices representing Farm Service Agency, Natural Resources Conservation Service, or Rural Development Service Centers, without “written notice and justification to Congress†no later than 60 days before the proposed closure.
Beyond Pesticides joins hundreds of other organizations, farmers, food businesses, and concerned parties across the nation in signing on to a letter directed at the Senate and House Agriculture Committees to express our support for this bill. (See here.)
Lawsuits are in motion, with Earthjustice filing a suit against the USDA that challenges the Department’s alleged illegal purging of datasets, resources, and pertinent information that organic farmers rely on to carry out their operations. In combination with unexpected cuts and cancellations, Northeast Organic Farmer Association of New York, as one of the lead plaintiffs, is seeking to stand up to the chaos in support of financial security for all farmers, regardless of organic certification. (See Daily News here.)
Benefits of Organic
There is extensive scientific research on the relationships between organic agriculture and planetary health. The Rodale Institute has conducted the longest-running North American field study comparing organic to chemical-intensive grain-cropping and reported in 2022 impressive productivity and profitability benefits based on four decades of data collection:
- Organic systems achieve 3–6 times the profit of conventional production;
- Yields for the organic approach are competitive with those of conventional systems (after a five-year transition period);
- Organic yields during stressful drought periods are 40% higher than conventional yields;
- Organic systems leach no toxic compounds into nearby waterways (unlike pesticide-intensive conventional farming;
- Organic systems use 45% less energy than conventional; and
- Organic systems emit 40% less carbon into the atmosphere.
Organically managed farmland has been found to increase the quantity and diversity of crop plant microbiota relative to chemical-intensive (conventional) counterparts, based on research by an international cohort from experts at Université de Rennes, Université de Paris-Saclay, L’Institut Agro Rennes-Angers, European Society for Agronomy, France’s National Research for Agriculture (INRAE), and Nanjing Agricultural University in Nanjing, Jiangsu, China. (See Daily News here.)
Organic methods of honey bee and biodiversity stewardship have been found to match or outcompete conventional, chemical-intensive practices, according to a study led by Pennsylvania State researchers in 2023. There are also plenty of opportunities to support ecosystem stability while farming organically, as proven in recent studies on bats.
There are also human health benefits. For example, adopting a fully organic diet can reduce pesticide levels in urine within just two weeks “by an average of 98.6%†and facilitate faster DNA damage repair relative to a diet of food grown with chemical-intensive practices, according to findings from a recently published randomized clinical trial building on existing research. (See Daily News here.)
See Why Organic? to learn more about the health, ecological, and environmental justice benefits of organic agriculture. See Beyond Pesticides’ National Forum session, Tackling the Climate Emergency (November 29, Session 3 recording) with a presentation by Rodale Institute’s Andrew Smith, PhD, and coauthor of several landmark reports on soil biology and carbon sequestration — including the Farming Systems Trial — 40-Year Report.
Call to Action
Across the country, people are preparing their comments for the Spring 2025 NOSB meeting, unpacking critical issues in maintaining trust and oversight into the National Organic Program. Beyond Pesticides continues to cultivate public awareness of the process through Keeping Organic Strong and numerous Actions of the Week, including one of the most recent: Organic Must Lead the Way.
Featured Image credit: Martin Falbisoner, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.
Sources: Organic Farming Research Foundation, National Young Farmers Coalition, National Organic Coalition
