How Can you Mend a Broken Organic Program?

Agreement is growing that the National Organic Program needs fixing. Animal welfare, import fraud, and soil-less crop production are chief among organic producer and consumer concerns. Our movement has had some limited success repairing the reputation of organic. Pesticide spraying underneath organic container plants is now prohibited, and Texas was forced to halt new organic livestock operations after a 14,000-head “organic” cattle operation violated the regulations. These improvements only tinker at the margins of bigger problems that most of us agree are urgent, requiring aggressive USDA action to improve the integrity and reputation of organic. But exactly what needs to be done and how is up for debate. Organic policy experts will present solutions for moving forward and will enlist audience feedback.