Meat+Poultry - April 2018 - 14

WA S H I N G T O N

Withdrawing organic rule
The US Dept. of Agriculture (USDA)
has decided to withdraw the Organic
Livestock and Poultry Practices (OLPP)
final rule to the dismay of stakeholders
in the organic agriculture industry. USDA
concluded the OLPP final rule exceeded
the agency's statutory authority and
would have negatively impacted
voluntary participation in the National
Organic Program "...after careful review
and two rounds of public comment."
The OLPP rule, commonly referred
to as the Organic Animal Welfare
Rule, began 14 years ago. It serves to
represent a series of organic animal
welfare recommendations incorporated
into the Organic Foods Production Act
of 1990. The rule:
x Establishes minimum indoor
and outdoor space requirements for
poultry;
x Clarifies how producers and
handlers must treat livestock and
chickens to ensure their health and
well-being throughout life, including
transport and slaughter;
x Specifies which physical alterations
are allowed and prohibited in organic
livestock and poultry production;
x 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; and
one year for all other adjustments; and
x Levels the playing field by clarifying
the existing organic standards.
"The existing robust organic
livestock and poultry regulations are
effective," said Greg Ibach, USDA
Marketing and Regulatory Program
Undersecretary. "The organic industry's
continued growth domestically and
globally shows that consumers trust
the current approach that balances
consumer expectations and the needs
of organic producers and handlers."
USDA explained that "significant
policy and legal issues were identified
after the rule published in January
2017." Changes to the existing organic
regulations, USDA said, could have
a negative effect on real costs for
producers and consumers. The Organic
Trade Assocition (OTA) vowed to
continue pursuing legal remedies to
resolve this issue.
"The USDA's unconscionable action
does not deter us," said Laura Batcha,
CEO and executive director of the OTA
in a statement. "We will continue our
fight in the court. USDA has requested
that this case be dismissed; now they
have announced they are withdrawing
the rule. But this issue will not go away.
This latest action by USDA will only
invigorate and solidify more support for
this regulation."
The OTA turned to the courts to
force USDA to uphold the organic

livestock standards. Most recently, the
OTA requested that oral arguments be
heard on a lawsuit that alleges USDA
unlawfully delayed the effective date of
the standards, abused its discretion by
ignoring public record that supported
the organic standards, and a regulatory
freeze on federal agencies by the Trump
administration issued on Jan. 20, 2017,
should not apply to organic standards
because they are voluntary and apply
only to those producers who participate.
Following the announcement of
USDA's decision, the OTA said, "The
Organic Trade Association last week
requested that oral arguments be heard
on its lawsuit against USDA over the
Department's failure to put into effect
new organic livestock standards. The
case is gaining significant momentum
and more organic businesses and
stakeholders are taking action to speak
out in support of the lawsuit.
"The Organic Trade Association
will immediately amend the complaint
to yet again challenge USDA's latest
attempt to kill a rule that has been fully
vetted over a decade."
The number of certified organic
operations in the United States
increased by 7 percent and globally by
11 percent, according to USDA reports
for 2017. Industry estimates show that
organic sales in the US approached $47
billion in 2016, reflecting an increase of
almost $3.7 billion since 2015.
E R I C A S H A FFE R | e s h a f f e r @s o s l a n d.c o m

- GREG IBACH

14

MEAT+ POULTRY | 04.18 | www.meatpoultry.com

Gary Blakeley/Shutterstock.com

"The organic industry's continued growth
domestically and globally shows that
consumers trust the current approach that
balances consumer expectations and the
needs of organic producers and handlers."
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Meat+Poultry - April 2018

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