The Organic Trade Association (OTA) is suing the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) amid growing fears that the Trump administration wants to kill a vital new organic rule.
The OTA fears that the USDA may be planning eventually to kill the popular Organic Animal Welfare Rule, which was published one day before the Trump administration took office.
The suit alleges the US Department of Agriculture violated the Organic Foods Production Act, and unlawfully delayed the effective date of the final livestock standards that were developed by industry and Congress, and with abusing the agency’s discretion by ignoring the overwhelming public record established in support of these organic standards.
The trade association also contends that the Trump Administration’s Regulatory freeze order issued to federal agencies on Jan. 20, 2017, should not apply to organic standards because they are voluntary and are required only of those farms and businesses that opt in to be certified organic.
“We are standing up on behalf of the entire organic sector to protect organic integrity, advance animal welfare, and demand the government keep up with the industry and the consumer in setting organic standards,” said Laura Batcha, executive director and CEO of the Organic Trade Association.
A host of organizations representing organic livestock farmers, organic certification agencies, and organic retailers and consumers have rallied behind the OTA in support of its action.
Batcha said the Organic Trade Association’s duty to protect the U.S. organic sector and enable it to advance, to uphold the integrity of the organic seal and to honor the consumer trust in that seal compelled the association – on behalf of the organic industry — to take the legal action against the Administration.
“The organic industry takes very seriously its contract with the consumer and will not stand aside while the government holds back the meaningful and transparent choice of organic foods that deliver what the consumer wants”
“The organic industry takes very seriously its contract with the consumer and will not stand aside while the government holds back the meaningful and transparent choice of organic foods that deliver what the consumer wants,” said Batcha. “The government’s failure to move ahead with this fully-vetted regulation calls into question the entire process by which organic regulations are set – a process that Congress created, the industry has worked within, and consumers trust.”
“The viability of the organic market rests on consumer trust in the USDA Organic seal, and trust that the organic seal represents a meaningful differentiation from other agricultural practices,” said Batcha, who noted that the Board of the Organic Trade Association voted unanimously to initiate the lawsuit.
The Organic Livestock and Poultry Production rule, commonly referred to as the Organic Animal Welfare Rule, is the result of 14 years of public and transparent work within the process established by Congress, and reflects deep engagement and input by organic stakeholders during multiple administrations, both Republican and Democrat.
It addresses four broad areas of organic livestock and poultry practices, including living conditions, animal healthcare, transport, and slaughter. The rule:
• Establishes minimum indoor and outdoor space requirements for poultry,
• Clarifies how producers and handlers must treat livestock and chickens to ensure their health and well-being throughout life, including transport and slaughter,
• Specifies which physical alterations are allowed and prohibited in organic livestock and poultry production,
• Provides more than ample timelines for producers to come into compliance including: five years to establish outdoor access requirements for egg operations; three years for broiler operations to establish indoor space requirements; one year for all other adjustments.
• Levels the playing field by clarifying the existing organic standards.
After extensive public input and vetting process the he National Organic Program released the final rule on Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices on January 19, 2017, and published it in the Federal Register on that day. Due to a White House Memorandum to federal agencies released on January 20, 2017, requesting a regulatory freeze on rules recently published or pending, the effective date of the rule was delayed to May 19,2017.
On May 10, 2017, the USDA delayed the effective date again by an additional six months to November 14, 2017, and opened a 30-day comment period asking for responses to four possible options for the Final Rule – letting the rule become effective (which would mean the rule would become effective on November 14, 2017; delay the effective date of the rule further; suspending the rule indefinitely; or withdrawing the rule.
More than 47,000 comments were received during the 30-day comment period, with 99 percent of those comments in support of the rule becoming effective as written without further delays, on Nov. 14, 2017.
“Producers are organic because they choose to be. It’s a voluntary system, and the organic sector welcomes clear and fair standards under which to operate,” said Batcha. “Organic regulations apply only to certified organic producers, and those organic producers are overwhelmingly in favor of this new regulation. Most of the criticism of the new organic animal welfare rule has come from outside the sector, and by special interest groups not impacted by the regulation, but which would like to override the will of our members.”
“Most of the criticism of the new organic animal welfare rule has come from outside the sector, and by special interest groups not impacted by the regulation, but which would like to override the will of our members”
“It is important to note this issue did not just arise in 2017, rather it is the result of many years of failure of good government,” Batcha added.
“The organic industry has been fighting for this rule for years,” said Jesse Laflamme, owner and CEO of organic egg producer Pete and Gerry’s Organics. “Certified organic egg, dairy and animal producers hold their operations to a higher standard of animal welfare than is required, because it is the right thing to do and it is what our customers expect. The organic industry works hard to live up to the expectation of its consumers, and we expect the USDA to live up to its mandate to oversee the industry in a way that is fair and will enable us to continue to prosper.”
Organic farmer cooperative Organic Valley CEO George Siemon said that the government’s failure to allow this regulation to be implemented could jeopardize consumer trust in organic.
“The organic consumer and community have worked closely with USDA to help craft this sound regulation, and have followed the established rulemaking process. For the Administration to now let political pressure derail that progress is an assault on the trust in the organic process that the organic industry works so hard every day to earn,” said Siemon. “Organic Valley works with thousands of organic dairy, laying hen, beef, hog and poultry producers, and has long advocated for action to clarify the living conditions and expectations for animal care in organic. Animal living conditions and welfare are a critical part of an organic livestock system. We in organic need to lead on this front, and the consumer’s trust in organic needs to be respected.”