Grow Organic | Briefing

The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) invite you to view a briefing on expanding organic agriculture. Organic agriculture is a time-tested, scientifically-supported approach to farming and ranching that centers ecological diversity, soil fertility, and natural systems rather than chemical interventions. The briefing featured the firsthand experience of organic farmers and findings from NRDC’s new report, Grow Organic: The Climate, Health, and Economic Case for Expanding Organic Agriculture.

As Congress crafts the next reauthorization of the Farm Bill, this briefing covered how federal policies can support the expansion of organic farming and ranching. Recommendations include reducing barriers to scaling up organic agriculture, ramping up federal resources for organic agriculture, and ensuring just and equitable participation, especially for Black, Indigenous, and people of color. Panelists described how these steps can provide benefits to the climate, health, and local economies.

Highlights

KEY TAKEAWAYS

The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) report, Grow Organic: The Climate, Health, and Economic Case for Expanding Organic Agriculture, describes how organic agriculture can reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve public health, and boost the economy. The report also makes the case for increased federal government investments in organic agriculture.
Organic producers reduce the climate footprint of agriculture by avoiding greenhouse gas intensive inputs, such as synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, and by building healthy soil using practices that make farms more resilient. Practices to build healthy soil include crop rotation, cover cropping, and applying compost.
Organic agriculture is a health solution. Many common synthetic pesticides used in non-organic agriculture are associated with human health threats, including developmental issues in children and various cancers, especially among farmworker, their families, and neighboring communities.
Organic agriculture is an economic solution. Organic producers often earn more for their products and pay less for inputs. Going organic can help struggling farms succeed economically.

Rep. Jimmy Panetta, U.S. Representative (D-Calif.)

The organic agriculture industry in the United States provides millions of jobs and creates millions of dollars in economic activity. However, public investment in organic agriculture is lacking, especially in comparison to other sectors of the agriculture industry.
Organic agriculture offers broad economic and health benefits, safeguards natural resources, and positions farmers and ranchers to thrive, even in droughts and other times of extreme weather. Public policies must ensure that organic agriculture is accessible to producers and consumers across the United States.
The Plant Biostimulant Act (R.1472/S.802) would create a uniform process for approving commercial plant biostimulant use and would require more federal research on the technology's benefits for soil health. Plant biostimulants are natural substances or microorganisms that support a plant's natural nutrition processes. Biostimulants can result in improved plant health, growth, quality, crop yield, and tolerance to environmental stresses. The use of plant biostimulants has also shown promise in eliminating the need for pesticides and fertilizers, and for facilitating sustainability management practices, such as carbon sequestration and water quality improvement.
The Opportunities in Organics Act would offer an array of flexible, easy-to-access tools to reduce barriers to organic agriculture. It also aims to modernize reimbursements for organic certification to ensure cost does not deter organic producers. The bill would increase technical expertise and support within public institutions and nongovernmental organizations so that producers in any part of the country would have access to professional assistance for building healthy soils, natural pest management, and protecting ecosystems and natural resources.

Kathleen Merrigan, Executive Director, Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems; Kelly and Brian Swette Professor of Sustainable Food Systems, Arizona State University

The Organic Foods Production Act became law as part of the 1990 Farm Bill.
From its inception, the National Organic Program was about strict standards and enforcement, with these standards only getting stricter over time.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently came out with their final rule on strengthening organic enforcement. While many people presume farmers did not want regulations, this rule came after years of organic farmers advocating for these regulations.
The Natural Resources Defense Council report, Grow Organic: The Climate, Health, and Economic Case for Expanding Organic Agriculture, describes how organic agriculture can reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve public health, and boost the economy. The report also makes the case for increased federal government investments in organic agriculture.
Organic agriculture is a complex production system and includes all kinds of production and processing requirements. Early on, those who marketed organic food focused on what organic prohibits: genetically modified organisms (GMOs), radiation, sewage sludge, antibiotics, and hormones. This marketing approach failed to describe what organic includes: requirements for crop rotation, humane housing for animals, pasture for ruminants, practices that build soil organic matter, and buffers to protect streams and prevent intrusion of non-organic crops.
After the USDA completed organic rulemaking in December 2000, they received 275,603 public comments. The number of comments from the public highlights the importance of this issue for constituents.
The National Organic Program has provided the necessary rules to foster the fastest growing subsector of American agriculture year in and year out. The National Organic Program was brought forth and continues to be nurtured by a strong coalition of environmental, consumer, and organic advocates.

Allison Johnson, Senior Attorney, Health & Food, Healthy People & Thriving Communities Program, Natural Resources Defense Council

Organic agriculture is a climate solution. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC's) most recent climate projections show that extreme weather is threatening the stability of food systems globally, with particularly acute impacts on Indigenous peoples, small-scale food producers, and low-income households. In the United States, the American Farm Bureau Federation estimated that in 2021, 20 major weather and climate disasters caused $12.5 billion in crop and range land losses. The IPCC report states that the solution is scaling up, adapting, and widely applying tried and tested options, such as organic agriculture.
Organic producers reduce the climate footprint of agriculture by avoiding greenhouse gas intensive inputs, such as synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, and by building healthy soil using practices that make farms more resilient. Practices to build healthy soil include crop rotation, cover cropping, and applying compost.
Organically-raised animals spend more time on pasture. With careful manure management, that reduces emissions and protects natural resources.
Organic agriculture is a health solution. Many common synthetic pesticides used in non-organic agriculture are associated with human health threats, including developmental issues in children and various cancers, especially among farmworker, their families, and neighboring communities. These pesticides also threaten the health of ecosystems, including by harming pollinators that are essential for producing foods like nuts and fruits.
Organic foods are often rich in compounds that make plants, animals, and people healthier.
Organic agriculture is an economic solution. Organic producers often earn more for their products and pay less for inputs. Going organic can help struggling farms succeed economically.
Organic agriculture is one of the few areas of the U.S. food system that has grown consistently for several decades. Organic farms tend to have more crop products and market diversity, which helps them stabilize their incomes and makes them more resilient even in the face of extreme weather and other disasters.
Four out of five households buy organic food on a regular basis. Organic agriculture has grown steadily since the National Organic Program was created decades ago, and organic sales now exceed $50 billion a year in the United States.
A 2020 study found that 14 percent of dedicated organic consumers identify as Black, 25 percent as Hispanic, and 10 percent as Asian, which exceeds the representation of each of these groups in the U.S. population.
Every state in the United States has at least two organic farmers and two organic processing operations, with most states having many more. As of 2021, Wisconsin had nearly 2,000 organic operations, Iowa, and Ohio each had over 1,000 organic operations, and Minnesota, Indiana, Michigan, Texas, and Illinois each had over 700 organic businesses.
Growth in demand for organic food is outpacing domestic supply. The United States imported $2.7 billion in organic products in 2021. Demand for commodities like organic grains is particularly high. Despite the high demand for organic, less than one percent of U.S. agricultural land is managed organically.
The Grow Organic report concludes that one reason for this disconnect is that organic agriculture has not received its fair share of public investments. It identifies 10 key policy solutions to shape the organic sector:
- Expand organic production by reducing barriers to organic transition,
- Ramp up federal resources that promote organic innovation, success, and accessibility,
- Ensure racial and Indigenous justice and equitable participation in organic agriculture,
- Use true cost accounting to identify agricultural investments that benefit the public,
- Create stable organic markets and expand access through public procurement,
- Reward organic management and ecosystem services in agricultural policies,
- Educate the public about the benefits of organic,
- Invest in regional supply chains to meet growing demand for organic,
- Strengthen organic rules and enforcement, and
- Integrate organic throughout public institutions.
To help more producers transition to organic and succeed in the long term, the United States needs a comprehensive approach to reduce barriers, expand representation, and ensure that organic farmers and ranchers have access to relevant technical assistance and financial flexibility. This means the United States needs to ensure that organic certification is affordable, flexible enough to serve all types of producers, and that public institutions have staff with adequate expertise and capacity to support all producers.
When organic farmers go to their local USDA office or university, it is often hard to find someone there who can advise on natural pest management or building healthy soil.
Organic agriculture could expand if this assistance reaches people in regions that have not seen public investments to date.

Nate Powell-Palm, Owner, Cold Springs Organics in Montana

Crop rotation is the cornerstone of organic certification and the entire organic system. Crop rotation allows producers to feed the soil, and, in turn, get robust yields without outside inputs. Since December 2021, there has been a significant spike in prices for farm inputs, which are needed for non-organic farms. Even with higher crop prices, non-organic farmers still have tight margins.
On the Cold Springs organic farm, they grow a series of crops in a closed ecosystem; the yellow peas feed the wheat and the flax cabbages provide the soil with extra nitrogen. The farm has cattle integrated into the system that can eat crops when there is a mistake made in the crop rotation process.
There are opportunities to help farmers get to a point where they do not have to be concerned with how they are going to pay their bills and are not beholden to a bank. From 2020 to 2021, the organic sector reached $63 billion in sales. Organic agriculture can solve many of the financial, health, and environmental issues that face rural America.
When farms cannot use synthetic inputs, such as herbicides, pesticides, or fungicides, they figure out a crop rotation that decreases the threat of pests, weeds, and diseases to crops, which benefits both the farmers and bankers. Synthetic inputs keep farmers hooked on a system that is not entirely resilient.
Flax is a fascinating agronomic crop that fits well with existing organic farms. Flax can suppress a number of fungi that attack wheat seed and pulse crops. At the same time, there is a critical shortage of organic flax in the marketplace, causing most of it to be imported.
Durum wheat is the foundational crop of Cold Springs’s operation. Montana is the largest organic wheat producer and has made huge strides in yields, agronomy, and plant protection. Moving to organic wheat can help ensure there is enough grain coming off farms to meet the needs of the United States and the world.
Unlike regenerative agriculture, organic is defined and has consumer recognition and trust. Organic is a free-market solution to increase climate-smart agriculture. The organic seal means that organic farmers have a direct pipeline to consumers, allowing farmers to have more economic resources sent to them and more consistent markets.
Transitioning to organic agriculture will only happen if it is a beneficial economic proposition for the farmer. The clear evidence that organic agriculture is beneficial to Cold Springs farm is that for the last 12 years, they have been able to start a farm, stay on a farm, have not touched inputs that harm human or soil health, have built up the soil, and have made money doing it.
Organic farming addresses climate change through the agricultural system. Organic agriculture is ready to be amplified and capitalized.

Wendy Johnson, Farmer, Jóia Food & Fiber Farm in Iowa

Jóia Food and Fiber Farm in Iowa transitioned to organic farming in 2014. The farm uses forages for grazing, and the nitrogen components of forages are also useful for planting corn and soybeans.
The farm uses the soil’s suitability for corn to grow an abundance of it to use for animal feed. However, the soil can be used to grow more crops than just corn.
Jóia Food and Fiber Farm raises grass-fed lambs, cows, chickens, ducks, and turkeys, and products are sold to regional markets to ensure that the food gets to local and regional consumers.
There are multiple strategies for getting food from farms to local consumers, and employing these strategies decreases the miles food travels to get to markets.
Grazing is a crucial part of organic rotations.
Organic agriculture promotes diversity and healthy ecosystems all while growing nutritious food.
Organic food is all about the soil as farmers rely only on biological and mechanical strategies to grow organic food.
Organic agriculture provides beginning farmers a way to be viable and a supportive community of mentors, fellow organic farmers, and organic consumers.
The diversity of crops in organic farming makes farms more resilient to the effects of climate change.
Livestock on the land is necessary in organic rotations to ensure a robust and resilient organic system.

Nayamin Martinez, Executive Director, Central California Environmental Justice Network

The Central California Environmental Justice Network (CCEJN) has been promoting environmental justice and health equity for the last 23 years.
Pesticides have damaged rural communities and have harmed farm workers.
Pesticides can drift from one field to another, and this drifting of pesticides is hard to report.
The California Department of Pesticide Regulation’s data on the numbers of pesticides affecting people is not entirely accurate as pesticide drift goes underreported, especially when farm workers are afraid to report it.
The reality for the thousands of farm workers in the Central Valley of California is that contractors still apply pesticides to their crops.
CCEJN has partnered with researchers at the University of California, Davis and Colorado State University to scientifically determine how pesticides go into the homes of rural residents and affect their health.
Even when jurisdictions ban certain pesticides, there are illegal applications of them.
The California Department of Food and Agriculture and the Department of Pesticide Regulation organized the Sustainable Pest Management Work Group to tackle the issue of pesticides. One of the strong recommendations of the roadmap released in January 2023 is that support from California for the adoption of organic agriculture should increase.
Decision makers need to ensure that all farmers can adopt organic farming, especially farmers of color who are often left behind in technical assistance and funding efforts.
The central California region has the worst air quality in the United States as it has high levels of particulate matter and ozone. There are also toxic air contaminants from pesticides, so reducing pesticide use can help address the issue of air quality.
Pesticides that have been banned for decades are still found in drinking water. This affects rural residents because their homes and water sources are close to where these pesticides were being applied.
Removing pesticides from water costs the state millions of dollars that comes from taxpayer money, but there is no accountability from the companies that produce pesticides.
CCEJN is starting a demonstration farm in southwest Fresno, California, where farm workers will be growing vegetables for themselves using organic practices.

Q&A

Q: What do you want Congress to know about organic agriculture when crafting the 2023 Farm Bill?

Merrigan

About less than one percent of USDA resources are focused on organic farming. Closing this gap in USDA funding is critical to organic farming.
The best way to learn about organic farming is visiting an organic farm in your district. Farmers are happy to explain what is going on to make farming organic and its rules less complex.
Do not write policy without having conversations with people who are producing the food.

Allison Johnson

It is important to understand that a food systems approach is necessary.
Many programs are pulled together in this massive piece of legislation, but farmers consistently report having a difficult time identifying the programs included in the Farm Bill as there is a lack of guidance and education on the programs.
To address confusion, programs should be designed to be flexible, work together, and meet farmers and ranchers where they are.
Promoting organic livestock processing capacity is often overlooked.
Decision makers need to attend to all the pieces that go into food production, and federal investment in agriculture should be leveraged in ways that maximize the benefits of what the federal government is spending. This is particularly important for organic farming.

Powell-Palm

Any support given to organic farming helps to bring funding back to domestic organic farmers, which is an opportunity of $3 to $6 billion. The United States is leaving this much money on the table with imports.
Organic farming offers the ability to expand the opportunities for all American farmers in a climate-smart manner.

Martinez

Organic farming is an underexplored way to tackle climate change from a new angle.
Organic farming focuses on carbon capture and reducing fossil fuel use.
Much of the discussion around climate changes does not touch on pesticide use, but this is an important issue to address.

Wendy Johnson

More support for organic processing is needed as is providing more organic grazing lands.
Including organic agriculture in crop insurance is key to supporting organic farmers.
Because organic agriculture is focused on biological and mechanical methods, there is a need for more workers. There is a lack of people in the labor pool and a lack of farmers with land to be the next generation of organic farmers.
Along with federal policy, the organic agriculture movement needs to invest in infrastructure available to a variety of people interested in farming.
Access to land and technical assistance is crucial for new farmers. Land access is a privilege and a major barrier for the next generation of organic farmers.
Grants and low-interest loans that are flexible during the first few years of transitioning to organic farming would help farmers remain viable without major losses.

Q: What are the workforce shortages that are a barrier to increasing organic farming?

Wendy Johnson

In Iowa, there are over 30 million acres of tillable land, but only 130,000 acres are certified organic.
Infrastructure is a major barrier to converting tillable land to organic farmland.
In terms of labor, there is a small labor pool and a lack of agronomists in organic farming.
Agronomists for organic farming are needed across the United States.
In the case of corn, it is easy to transport corn to an ethanol plant in the same town, but organic products often must be transported much farther away to be processed or sold, and this distance acts as a barrier to increasing organic farming.
Access to land is a big barrier to organic farming in general, and this prevents people from joining the workforce.

Powell-Palm

Jobs in organic farming need to be advertised. There is a lack of knowledge about the opportunities in agriculture that exist outside of tilling the land.
People leaving college have no idea about the jobs in organic farming that allow them to travel the country, talk with farmers, and be the eyes and ears of the organic consumer.
Infrastructure around transporting organic crops needs to be developed so that organic farmers have the same convenience of access to nearby markets that traditional farmers do.

Merrigan

There is not an adequate number of technical service providers.
Specifically, there are not enough people who have organic expertise and have been certified by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. This presents an opportunity to get more technical service providers involved.

Allison Johnson

There are few experts on the laws surrounding organic agriculture.
There are careers beyond farming in organic agriculture, yet these careers are not well-known or advertised.
The Opportunities in Organics Act was developed through three years of outreach to organic producers and organizations, and the widespread need for capacity and technical assistance for organic farmers is addressed in the forthcoming bill. It would provide funding to help train organic inspectors and help farms explore organic certification as an opportunity to bring in more income for the farm.
Building up the certification workforce will bring down the cost of organic certifications and ensure the resources that producers need are available.

Martinez

For small farmers and farmers of color in the Central Valley of California, there is a great need for technical assistance, and language barriers impede farmers from accessing resources.
The applications to receive funding from the USDA and California Department of Food and Agriculture are labor-intensive, and small farmers may not have the staff or technical expertise to navigate these applications. Assisting farmers with these applications is a potential job opportunity.
Most people work in agriculture because they own land, but people who do not own land might have an interest in being an agricultural technical expert.

Q: Where does organic farming fit into USDA’s programs for climate-smart agriculture?

Allison Johnson

Reducing agricultural greenhouse gas emissions is a huge part of climate-smart agriculture, and that is related to reducing producers’ reliance on energy-intensive inputs and practices that generate greenhouse gas emissions.
Synthetic fertilizer is extremely energy intensive to produce, and it also contributes to greenhouse gas emissions when it is used. The production and use of synthetic nitrogen fertilizer alone accounts for 2.4 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. Organic producers are doing away with those emissions completely by not using synthetic fertilizers and instead implementing practices that pull carbon out of the atmosphere.
USDA should consider the emissions of agricultural practices and ensure that programs around climate-smart agriculture acknowledge what is built into the rules of organic farming.

Merrigan

Nitrous oxide from fertilizer contributes to climate change, but organic farmers have alternatives to using fertilizer such as rotating crops.
Organic farmers follow strict rules around fertilizer alternatives, unlike any other kind of farmer in the country.
When the Food and Drug Administration completed their rulemaking for the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (L. 111–353), they advised farmers to follow the organic standards for using raw manure as fertilizer, to maximize safety. This demonstrates how strict the standards of organic agriculture are in comparison to other agricultural programs.

Wendy Johnson

These ecosystem services provided by organic agriculture have value, and the USDA should recognize this value.
Organic farming promotes perennials being raised on land while also growing food for people.
More incentives for organic farming would support farmers making the transition to organic practices.

Powell-Palm