Opportunities in organic program

Section 10606 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 6523) is amended— (1)in the section heading, by striking

National organic certification cost-share

and inserting

Opportunities in organic

;(2)in subsection (a)—(A)by striking national organic certification cost-share program to assist and inserting

opportunities in organic program to—(1)assist

;

(B)by striking the period at the end and inserting ; and; and(C)by adding at the end the following:

(2)provide support and technical assistance for transition to organic and organic management.

;

(3)by striking subsection (b);(4)by redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as subsections (e) and (f), respectively;(5)by inserting after subsection (a) the following:

(b)

Federal organic certification cost share

(1)

In general

Subject to paragraph (2), the Secretary shall make payments to producers and handlers to reimburse such producers or handlers for costs incurred in obtaining certification under the national organic production program.(2)

Maximum amount

(A)

In general

Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the maximum amount of a payment made to a producer or handler under this section shall not exceed $1,500.(B)

Ensuring affordability

Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), the Secretary may make payments under this section that exceed the maximum amount specified in such subparagraph—(i)in the case of such a payment made to a producer or handler who is—(I)located in a region with disproportionately high certification costs; or(II)a member of a socially disadvantaged group; or(ii)in the case of any other such payment made to a producer or handler not described in clause (i), if the Secretary determines that exceeding such amount would ensure that organic certification costs are not a barrier to organic production.(c)

Transition and resilience funding

(1)

In general

The Secretary shall award funding to eligible nonprofit organizations for any of the purposes specified in paragraphs (2), (3), and (4). (2)

Capacity building

The purposes specified in this paragraph are staffing, materials, activities, and partnerships (such as with smaller nonprofit organizations) that support transition to organic and resilience of certified organic farms, including the following:(A)Recruitment of producers to begin transition to organic.(B)Translation and communication support, including the development of simple and culturally appropriate materials to increase understanding of the practices and processes required to become certified under the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6501 et seq.).(C)Assistance with applications, compliance, recordkeeping, and other aspects of the organic certification process under such Act.(D)Financial, business, and farm planning.(E)Support for fair contracting.(F)Technical assistance with soil building, pest management, and other practices.(G)Providing training on organic certification requirements and organic management to agricultural advisors and consultants, including agronomists, crop advisors, pest control advisors, extension agents, farm consultants, and other technical service providers.(H)Facilitating paid mentor-mentee relationships between organic producers and producers in transition to organic, including stipends for all participants and training to support effective mentorship.(I)Assisting producers with accessing resources and funding, including conservation programs, risk management tools, and organic support and research programs.(J)Establishing or expanding cooperatives, organic grower groups, certified organic processing, storage, distribution facilities and equipment, food hubs, food security and sovereignty programs, organic-compliant composting services, and other regional foodshed and supply chain infrastructure.(K)On-farm research, including monitoring biodiversity, air, and water quality, measuring changes in soil organic carbon and indicators of soil health, developing regionally adapted seeds and breeds, and trialing and documenting effectiveness of holistic approaches to pest, weed, and disease control.(L)Recruiting and training organic certification staff and inspectors, with an emphasis on expanding opportunities for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers and increasing diversity in the certification process.(M)Increasing access to land for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers and small- and mid-sized farms and ranches and promoting long-term organic management (such as purchases of land for incubator projects, promoting and supporting lease-to-own contracts, resolving heirs property issues, and establishing easements that facilitate long-term organic stewardship).(N)Hosting or supporting regional convenings, conferences, farmer-led trainings, field days, teach-ins, and other educational opportunities focused on organic production.(O)Establishing infrastructure for inter-farmer skills share and exchanges, including virtual forums.(3)

Producer transition and resilience

The purpose specified in this paragraph is to provide one-time, 4-year, transition and resilience funding to socially disadvantaged farmers or ranchers or small or mid-sized farms or ranches to offset costs of, and reduce barriers to, becoming or expanding a certified organic farm, including through the following: (A)Creating or expanding an organic system plan (as defined in section 205.2 of title 7, Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on the date of the enactment of the Opportunities in Organic Act of 2023), including the following:(i)Completing organic certification documents, planning, and recordkeeping.(ii)Developing a plan to build soil health.(B)Adopting, improving, or expanding organic management, including:(i)Eliminating use of synthetic pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, or antibiotics.(ii)Cover cropping, crop rotation, or rotational grazing.(iii)Production and use of compost and manure (including purchasing tools, supplies, or storage).(iv)Sourcing or producing organic seed and feed.(v)Hedgerow and ecosystem enhancement planting and design.(vi)Purchasing supplies for intercropping and polycropping or other specialized equipment.(vii)Supporting beneficial predators, pollinator habitats, erosion prevention, or watershed restoration.(C)Costs associated with processing, storage, and distribution equipment and facilities.(D)Carrying out on-farm research to monitor and document the impacts of transition to organic, including in partnership with another entity.(E)Soil testing.(F)Debt relief to improve access to capital and financial stability.(G)Forming a cooperative or farmer-to-farmer network.(H)Training to become an organic inspector to expand revenue and regional inspection capacity.(I)Covering costs associated with overcoming barriers to land access, including payments to secure longer leases and to cover costs associated with—(i)accessing land that has not been treated with materials prohibited for use on a certified organic farm; or(ii)transitioning land to organic management.(J)Covering labor costs, including improvements to workplace safety, compensation, professional development, and staff training on organic transition implementation.(K)Improving food safety practices and obtaining related certifications.(L)Providing or participating in organic agriculture educational opportunities.(M)Replacing foregone income during transition to organic due to short-term changes in yield and limited market options.(N)Construction or improvement of housing for apprentices, trainees, or volunteers or other on-farm infrastructure.(O)Financial, business, and farm planning.(4)

Organic supply chain

The purposes specified in this paragraph are to provide funding to other entities—(A)to strengthen organic capacity or expand access to certified organic handling operations, including—(i)constructing, expanding, or improving access to a certified organic handling operation;(ii)purchasing farm equipment, value added supplies, and other materials that improve market access; and(iii)pursuing organic certification for an existing handling operation; and(B)to strengthen opportunities in organic production for socially disadvantaged farmers or ranchers, small or mid-sized farms or ranches, or vulnerable agricultural regions (such as farms near schools, childcare providers, residential areas, sensitive ecosystems) or under-resourced agricultural regions.(5)

Meetings

An eligible nonprofit organization that receives funds under this subsection shall—(A)communicate not less than once per calendar quarter with each entity awarded funding for the purposes specified in paragraphs (3) and (4) to—(i)monitor progress with respect to transition to organic and organic supply chain development;(ii)address the improvement to, and impact of, the transition to organic production, including observed changes in biodiversity, soil health, pests, weeds, and disease occurrence, crop yield, and resilience;(iii)address challenges in transitioning to organic and program participation;(iv)consider market opportunities for organic products and the adoption of additional practices that reduce the use of synthetic chemicals and foster soil fertility; and(v)explore opportunities for coordinated farm team meetings with staff from relevant agencies and other organizations, to streamline agricultural assistance and improve farm viability, while increasing adoption of on-farm conservation practices; and(B)meet not less than once per year with staff of the Department of Agriculture (as determined by the Secretary) for the duration of the funding period to discuss program participation and impacts, demographics and scale of participants, transition success rates, market opportunities, research results, and challenges identified.(d)

Technical assistance

(1)

In general

The Secretary shall increase regional resources to support organic management, including technical assistance, outreach, supply chain coordination, and activities specified in paragraph (2), through expanded organic-related capacity and partnerships at—(A)the Department of Agriculture, including within the Agricultural Marketing Service, the Farm Service Agency, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Risk Management Agency, the offices under the Undersecretary of Rural Development, the Food and Nutrition Service, and climate hubs, with an emphasis on local and regional offices;(B)universities and educational institutions, with an emphasis on institutions serving socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers;(C)the cooperative extension programs of the Secretary, including the federally recognized Tribes extension program under section 3(d) of the Smith-Lever Act (7 U.S.C. 343(d));(D)State, regional, and Tribal departments of agriculture; and(E)eligible nonprofit organizations.(2)

Activities

Activities specified in this paragraph include—(A)providing regional education sessions on organic management;(B)developing regionally-tailored resources, technical assistance programs, and teaching farms for organic producers and producers in transition to organic, including tools to promote and facilitate participation of socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers and small- and mid-sized farms and ranches in organic and complementary support programs;(C)conducting ongoing outreach to, and needs assessment of, producers in transition to organic to identify barriers to organic production and mechanisms to address such barriers;(D)identifying priority locations to promote transition to organic, including near schools and childcare providers, residential areas, and sensitive ecosystems;(E)developing organic supply chain and infrastructure;(F)expanding organic and local supply chains and market opportunities, including establishing channels for producers to offer products to institutional buyers and supporting purchases through nutrition programs; and(G)advancing food waste reduction strategies that support producer income and soil health, including—(i)closed-loop programs that connect community composting and food scrap collection operations with farms; and(ii)coordination to maximize use of farm products, composting, and waste reduction;

;

(6)in subsection (e), as so redesignated—(A)by striking including the and inserting the following:

including—(1)the

;

(B)by striking the period at the end and inserting a semicolon; and(C)by adding at the end the following:

(2)the demographics, acreage, and sales of producer participants, aggregated by region;(3)the number of producers and handlers that received support from the program in the previous fiscal year who—(A)began transition to organic; and(B)achieved new organic certification;(4)any barriers to achieving organic certification;(5)the transition activities carried out by eligible nonprofit organizations and the measures of success of such activities;(6)research findings and best practices to support transition to organic;(7)changes in organic-relevant capacity at public institutions and eligible nonprofit organizations; and(8)changes in availability of organic-relevant technical assistance.

;

(7)in subsection (f)(1), as so redesignated, by striking subparagraphs (A) through (C) and inserting the following:

(A)$50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2024 and 2025;(B)$80,000,000 for fiscal year 2026; and(C)$100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2027 and 2028.

; and

(8)by adding at the end the following:

(f)

Definitions

In this section:(1)

Socially disadvantaged farmer or rancher; socially disadvantaged group

The terms socially disadvantaged farmer or rancher and socially disadvantaged group have the meanings given those terms in section 2501(a) of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 2279(a)).(2)

Eligible nonprofit organization

The term eligible nonprofit organization means a nonprofit organization (as defined in section 1619(b) of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 5801(b)) that primarily serves at least one of the following:(A)Socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers.(B)Organic producers and handlers.(C)One or more vulnerable (e.g., farms near schools, childcare providers, residential areas, sensitive ecosystems) or under-resourced agricultural regions.(D)Smaller nonprofit organizations that primarily serve (A), (B), or (C).(3)

Organic

The term organic has the meaning given such term in section 205.2 of title 7, Code of Federal Regulations (or successor regulations).(4)

Certified organic farm

The term certified organic farm has the meaning given that term in section 2103 of Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6502).(5)

Certified organic handling operation

The term certified organic handling operation has the meaning given that term in section 2103 of Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6502).(6)

Transition to organic

The term transition to organic means carrying out the steps required to become a certified organic farm.