A CSA farmer in New York has started an alternative certification program for growers who don’t want to be certified under the new USDA National Organic Program.

Ron Khosla of Huguenot Street Farm in New Paltz, NY, has created Certified Naturally Grown, a certification program loosely based on organic crop production standards. Certified Naturally Grown will have more relaxed recordkeeping requirements than the USDA organic program. And the cost will be minimal – this year, the program is free; next year, the cost will be on a sliding scale from $25 to $100.

The program can be administered so cheaply for two main reasons: First, inspections will be done by farmers. Every farmer who signs up has to agree to perform at least one inspection of another farm. To preserve the integrity of the inspections, farmers will not be allowed to trade inspections; that is, you can’t inspect the farmer who inspects you. As a result, at least three farms are needed in an area to get the program started.

The second reason Certified Naturally Grown will be inexpensive is because it will be administered almost entirely on the organization’s web site. Farmers will read the standards on the web, apply on the web, and post their inspection reports on the web. Consumers will be able to view those applications and inspection reports on the web, too. Khosla, who was involved in several internet businesses before becoming a farmer four years ago, says the system will be almost completely automated.

Why another program?
The federal organic law, which takes effect on Oct.21, prohibits the use of the word “organic” on food unless it has been certified by a USDA-accredited certification agency.

Many growers have complained that the new federal program is too expensive and requires too much recordkeeping for small growers. Certified Naturally Grown is the second organic alternative to pop up this year, as the implementation of the federal program takes effect. The Wholesome Food Association, a British labeling program, is also implementing a pilot program for U.S. growers, as reported in the May 2002 issue of Growing for Market. By mid-June, only six U.S. growers had signed up for WFA, director Phil Chandler said, but many more have gotten in touch and expressed interest.

Certified Naturally Grown will be familiar to growers who have called themselves organic because it is based on widely accepted organic standards and principles.

“Most of us who grow organically don’t do so for marketing reasons,” Ron Khosla said. “We grow this way because we care about our families’ and workers’ health, the health of our friends and customers purchasing and enjoying our food, and because we want to be good, sustainable stewards of the small portion of this earth that has temporarily been put under our care.
“But by not allowing us to use the word ‘Organic’ any more to describe our growing methods, the USDA has unnecessarily created a confusing public situation. People that have trusted us to grow without synthetic chemicals for years because we have proudly labelled ourselves ‘ORGANIC FARMERS’ cannot help but question why we are no longer ‘allowed’ to call ourselves ‘Organic.’”

Ron has been the administrator of a certification program called Natural Farm Associates, which New York City’s Greenmarket used to ensure that growers calling themselves organic really were. Ron said that as he inspected farms in the past year, many farmers told him they would not get certified organic under the impending federal law because of recordkeeping requirements and the cost of certification.

Recordkeeping
“The recordkeeping more than anything, even more than the money, drove me to do this,” Ron said.

Under the USDA program, certified organic growers must keep extensive records on each crop they grow. For large-scale farms growing just a few crops, that’s not too difficult. But for the typical small-scale market gardener, who might have a hundred different crops each year, Ron said, the recordkeeping will be a burden.

Certified Naturally Grown will require members to keep their purchase receipts, but they will not have to keep logs and journals of everything they do on the farm, he said.
Certified Naturally Grown’s standards are posted on the web site. “They can easily be compressed into a single sentence -No Synthetic Chemicals are used to grow food!” Ron said. Beyond that, there are “Encouraged Practices” such as crop rotations, green manures, and diversified crops. A second category called “Allowed with Caution and Restraint” covers botanical pesticides, plastic mulch and similar inputs. Then there are flat-out prohibited substances such as chemical pesticides, bone meal, and urea. Ron said that acceptable materials will have to be approved by the Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI), which also approves products for the federal organic progam.

Ron says the key to success for the new program is to get a lot of farmers signed up quickly. That’s why he’s making it free this year during the start-up phase. He has a private backer, a member of his CSA in New Paltz, New York, who is loaning him start-up money. He also is applying to the IRS for non-profit status for the organization.

During this first year, Certified Naturally Grown will certify horticultural crops including vegetables, fruits, flowers, and plants. Hay and grains also can be certified. In the future, if demand exists, the program might offer certification for poultry, dairy, and livestock.

To learn more about Certified Naturally Grown, visit the website: www.naturallygrown.org. Or phone Ron at 845-256-0686. The Wholesome Food Association website is at www.wholesomefood.org.