Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) is a USDA-accredited certifying agent for organic crop production and organic handling/processing. This means that ODA's Organic Program staff ensure the National Organic Program (NOP) regulations are being met locally for the Crop and Handler scopes. ODA does not certifiy livestock at this time.
Steps to certification
- Read and become familiar with the most recent version of the NOP regulations.
- Implement organic standards:
- Growers: implement organic growing practices for at least 36 months and keep record of your activity. You can now apply as transitional if you don't yet meet the 36-month requirement.
- Processors: meet organic processing requirements and produce an organic product. You can now apply as transitional if you don't yet produce an organic product, but plan to produce organic products in the near future.
- Submit completed application forms and applicable fees to ODA by the annual deadlines. Deadlines and fee schedule are below.
- ODA will review your application to determine compliance to the NOP standards and provide an estimate of your certification costs for the year.
- ODA will schedule an on-site inspection of your operation.
- ODA will conduct a final review and quality insurance review of your application and inspection materials to complete the certification process.
- At any step in the process ODA may require additional information or forms, and staff will request this information as needed.
- Submittal of renewal application, documentation, and fees are required each year by the deadline.
- Timely submittal of all new applicant and renewal documentation, and timely submittal of all requested forms is a requirement of the program.
- There is no guarantee of certification. If NOP standards are not met, a customer cannot be certified as organic. Certification fees are nonrefundable regardless of the certification outcome.
- You may surrender your certificate at any time if: you no longer wish to be certified organic, you cannot meet annual organic requirements, and/or you would like to work with a different certifier. Surrender takes you out of the program without disciplinary actions.
Strengthening Organic Enforcement
As of March 19, 2024, the updated National Organic Program (NOP) federal regulation Strengthening Organic Enforcement (SOE) practices are in effect. At a general level this increase means that all parts of the organic supply chain are now regulated in the same manner by NOP. Below is a summary of what this means for current customers.
In 2025 all Organic System Plans and Organic System Plan Updates must include:
- Description of your operations procedures to verify the Organic System Plan is effectively implemented and what your practices are to prevent fraud. In accordance with 7 CFR 205.201(a)(3)
- Description of your operations monitoring practices to verify organic status of agricultural products received by your operation and the organic status of suppliers. This description must include how often you are preforming this verification. In accordance with 7 CFR 205.201(a)(3)
- Maintain records of your activities spanning from when the item was purchased through production to its transport or sale.
- Keep records that trace back to the last certified operation in your supply chain.
- ODA will request a summary of operations practices for this work by August 31, 2024 for existing customers.
Already in effect: Nonretail container labelling: nonretail containers used to ship or store organic products must be labelled and the label must identify contents as organic and include a lot number or other information connecting the product to audit trail documentation.
- Please submit your labels to ODA as soon as possible. We would like to have these in for all customers by August 31, 2024.
Already in effect: If you are importing organic products to the United States, only products that have a valid Organic Import Certificate (obtained by the exporter from the other country) are allowed.
- Please note, ODA does not certify operations in other countries.
Already in effect: Organic certificates are being issued through the Organic Integrity Database.
2024 Organic certification application
The sooner applications and application materials are submitted per year, the sooner applications can be reviewed, and certificates can be issued, so ODA encourages an early submittal if that is possible for your operation.
Required forms for a RENEWAL crop growing application
Potential attachments to include with your application: seed tags/information that shows organic status of crop; complete ingredient information for any farm-created inputs; maps showing all organic fields with field names, buffers, and potential sources of drift.
Required forms for a NEW crop growing operation application
Potential attachments to include with your application: seed tags/information that shows organic status of crop; complete ingredient information for any farm-created inputs; maps showing all organic fields with field names, buffers, and potential sources of drift.
Additional crop application forms
Required forms for a NEW handling/processing operation application
Potential attachments to include with your application: Labels; Formulations; Organic Certificate for the ingredients of each product.
Required forms for a RENEWAL handling/processing application
Potential attachments to include with your application: Labels; Formulations; Organic Certificate for the ingredients of each product.
Additional application forms for a handling/processing operation
Unannounced Inspections
While this is not a new requirement for organic certificate, we are reminding customers that as a condition of working with ODA to become organically certified or maintain organic certification, you are agreeing to participate in unannounced inspections.
ODA, and all organic certifiers are required by the National Organic Program to preform unannounced inspections on up to 5% of all of our operations. We reserve the right to conduct an unannounced inspection on your operation and may exceed the 5% of these types of inspections for fraud prevention. If we are not able to do so as per 7 CFR 205.403(b)(1) and 205.403(b)(2) it is possible your operation will receive a noncompliance or prevent you for becoming organically certified.
Unannounced inspections may be done in person or remotely via a desk audit where we will request documents to complete a traceback exercise.
Transitional
Applications for Transitional Customers are now allowed under NOP rules. For Transitional status, fill out the required information for Crop or Handler Scope(s) and note on the OSP that you are interested in participating as a Transitional Customer. The same fee schedule and review occur for Certified Organic and Transitional. The Transitional Customer does not receive an Organic Certificate but is listed on the Organic Integrity Database as Transitional.
Imports
Customers Importing organic products or plant material from other countries need to disclose specific information about imported materials on the OSP or renewal updates and are required to supply ODA with a copy of the Import Certificate for each product from the Organic Integrity Database (starting March 24, 2024).
Exports
Customers interested in export need to meet the requirements of organic certification for the country that is importing your goods. Compliance for export is reviewed by ODA inspectors and certification staff, so interest in export should be identified on your OSP or renewal updates. It's advisable to review the NOP Trade Information website for the latest export regulations and processes. Contact ODA certification if there are questions about export or if you would like to request an export document.
All information submitted to support an export request should match: the export request, your Organic profile information, and the information on your Organic Certificate.
Surrender
If you would like to surrender your certificate, please send a request to surrender to certification@oda.oregon.gov. Once you surrender your certificate, you will no longer be able to sell or represent products as organic.
Fees
The Certification Fee Schedule outlines the different costs associated with certification. All fees are nonrefundable, including the cost of services performed before and up to the date an application is withdrawn or certification is surrendered. Applicants may withdraw their application at any time, via written notification to ODA. Please contact certification@oda.state.or.us for additional fee information.
Inspections
Certified organic operations are inspected at least once a year. ODA may conduct additional inspections:
- Randomly (NOP requires 5% unannounced inspections completed per year)
- To resolve an issue
- If a customer requests it
- As part of our surveillance program
- To take samples (NOP requires that 5% of operations are sampled each year)
These additional inspections are charged at the hourly rate described above.
OSP updates and changes to operations
Operations are required to notify their certifying agent if changes or events take place that may affect their compliance with the NOP standards. Examples of situations that would require you to notify ODA include the following:
- Permission to use a new input.
- Requests to certify a new product or a new crop not listed on your OSP update as organic.
- A prohibited substance is applied to any field, production unit, product, parcel, or site involved in organic production, whether directly or indirectly, intentionally, or unintentionally.
- You add acreage, a new field, a new greenhouse, a new product line, or a new production facility to your organic operation.
- You remove a field or production facility, or a portion thereof, from organic production.
- You develop a new retail label for your organic products.
- You process or handle new organic products, not already listed in your OSP/renewal.
This list is not exhaustive. If a change to your operation could potentially affect your compliance with the NOP standards, please contact ODA Certification Services at the phone number or email address listed above.
Resources
The Organic Insider
An email notification service from the USDA National Organic Program. NOP Organic Insider