Stricter Standards Could Slow Growth of Organic Farming

Bismarck Tribune Online - Bismarck, ND:
by Frederic Frommer, Associated Press writer -- June 27, 2005

WASHINGTON -- Some farmers are worried that a federal court ruling requiring the Agriculture Department to come up with stricter standards for organic food will slow the fast-growing industry.

But consumers advocates are cheering the decision, saying it will ensure people get higher-quality food when they purchase products with the organic label.

Earlier this month, the U.S. District Court in Maine finalized a court ruling that bans dozens of synthetic ingredients that the USDA had allowed in products labeled organic. Of particular interest in the upper Midwest, the court also ruled that dairy farmers must give their herds 100 percent organic feed for a full year before being certified organic. They had been able to get by with 80 percent organic feed.

The ruling came after a Maine organic blueberry farmer, Arthur
Harvey, sued the USDA, arguing the current regulations violate the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990.