10.27.2008 9:58 AM

USDA Proposes Clearer Organic Pasture Rules

Do You Know How the Cow That Produced Your Organic Beef Was Treated?

Comments

Photo: Martin Poole / Istock

By Annie Bell Muzaurieta

Some argue that government regulation has dumbed down organic standards.

But the USDA proposed a rule on Friday that would be a good thing for the National Organic Program (NOP). The rule intends to clarify the role pasture plays in the production of organic ruminants (cows, goats, sheep).

Agricultural Marketing Service Administrator Lloyd C. Day suggested in a press release that this rule would give producers better tools to manage pasture and certifying agents better tools to measure compliance.

The Organic Trade Association (OTA) issued a press release in support of the proposed rule, suggesting that the regulations are in the spirit of practices that most organic farmers have been using on their lands for years, and that they are good for consumers too. Christine Bushway, OTA's executive director, said: "This rule will continue to reassure shoppers that milk, beef, lamb, and other products are from animals that have access to well-managed pasture according to the strict national organic standards."

Highlights of the proposed rule include:

A definition of "growing season," and the requirement that all animals over the age of six months must be on pasture throughout the growing season.
Animals must receive 30 percent of their dry matter intake (DMI) from pasture.
A definition of "temporary confinement," and clarification of periods of temporary confinement.
A pasture practice standard that addresses the management of pasture as a crop.

The comment period for the proposed rule closes on December 23, 2008.

COMMENTS ()