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FOR GROWERS
Organic Certification
TOP QUESTIONS & ITEMS:
WHO HAS TO BE CERTIFIED?
THE $5000 EXEMPTION:
HOW DO I GET CERTIFIED?
In addition to the Organic Farm Plan packet, livestock and poultry producers must submit the Organic Livestock Plan as well. Once an application packet is received it is checked to make sure all of the required information is present, then it is sent to a Reviewer for technical review. The Reviewer makes sure that the application packet meets the requirements of the National Organic Program. If it does not, the grower or livestock producer is contacted to provide additional information. Once the technical review is complete, an on site inspection is scheduled at a time that is mutually convenient for the grower or livestock producer and the inspector. The inspector usually spends 2-4 hours at an operation, verifying that all of the information in the application is correct, and the operation is in compliance with the National Organic Standards. At the end of the inspection, the inspector reviews any questionable items or noncompliances with the grower or livestock producer, then the inspector submits his report to BOC.
BOC reviews the inspector's report and any additional information from the application packet, or the technical review, and makes a certification decision. Certification is either granted, granted with conditions, postponed or denied. For many operations, BOC will either grant certification with conditions or postpone certification until minor noncompliances with the National Organic Standards are corrected.
In extreme cases, BOC will deny organic certification to an applicant if there are major noncompliances with the National Organic Standards at the applicant's farm.
The entire certification process can take as little as 4 weeks to complete for an operation that is prepared for certification, and is applying for certification during the growing season. On average, the process takes 8-10 weeks from receipt of a complete application until a certification decision is made. If you need rush organic certification, contact our office and we will work with you to see if meeting your deadline is feasible.
APPLICATION DEADLINES:
BOC does encourage growers and livestock producers to submit applications for one of our 3 deadline dates: February 15th, March 15th, and June 15th. Growers and livestock producers who submit applications for these deadlines will receive a certification decision by May 1st, June 1st, and September 1st respectively.
In addition, growers and livestock producers who submit applications for these deadlines may split their certification fee into two payments. 60% of the certification fee must be paid at the time the application is submitted, the other 40% must be paid on August 1st for operations that apply for the February 15th or March 15th deadline, or October 1st for operations that apply for the June 15th deadline.
RENEWING CERTIFICATION:
CRANBERRY GROWERS:
MAPLE SYRUP PRODUCERS:
ORDERING HARDCOPIES OF THE APPLICATION FORMS:
Baystate Organic Certifiers
ORDERING HARDCOPIES OF THE PROGRAM MANUAL:
The National Organic Standards require that any grower or livestock producer that markets their products as organic must be certified by an accredited certifying agent. Growers may apply for certification to any accredited certifying agent that certifies in their state. Certification fees and certification procedures vary between certifying agents, so a grower or livestock producer may want to check out several certifying agents before deciding which agent to apply to.
Per section 205.101 of the National Organic Standards, growers and livestock producers whose gross agricultural income from organic sales totals $5000 or less annually are exempt from the requirement to be certified. However, exempt growers and livestock producers must comply with all of the applicable organic production and handling requirements of the Organic Standards and the products from exempt operations shall not be used as organic in processed products produced by an organic handling operation.
Applicants for certification should familiarize themselves with the certification procedures of Baystate Organic Certifiers (BOC) and the organic standards of the National Organic Program. This information is contained in the Baystate Organic Certifiers Program Manual which may be downloaded from this website, or which can be ordered from our office. All applicants must submit an application packet (the Organic Farm Plan) which describes their operation in significant detail, and pay the certification fee for the year. Application forms may be downloaded from this website or ordered from our office.
Growers and Livestock producers may submit an application for certification at any time throughout the year. However, the certification inspection must take place at a time when the certified crop or livestock may be observed. Therefore, certification may be delayed in some cases until an appropriate inspection may take place.
Certification must be renewed annually and all application information updated. Renewal application packets are mailed at least one (1) month before an operation's renewal certification date.
Must submit the Organic Cranberry Plan instead of the Organic Farm Plan.
Maple Syrup is one of the easiest crops to produce organically. Download the following Guidance Document for Maple Syrup Producers by clicking HERE. Maple Syrup Producers only have to submit the following application forms to apply for certification. Please make sure you submit your application for certification of maple syrup in late fall or early winter, so BOC can certify your operation before the year's sap run.
Hardcopies of the application forms can be obtained by calling or writing Baystate at:
c/o Don Franczyk
1220 Cedarwood Circle
North Dighton, MA 02764
Phone: (774) 872-5544
Hardcopies of the Program Manual cost $25 each, and can be obtained by sending a check made out to "Baystate Organic Certifiers" to the address listed above.
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