The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently published the Origin of Livestock final rule for organic dairy.
According to a March 29 news release, this change will make sure all USDA-certified dairy products are produced to the same established standards, which will promote a more fair and competitive organic dairy market.
"This action demonstrates the USDA’s strong commitment to America’s organic dairy farmers," Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said. "The Origin of Livestock final rule provides clear and uniform standards about how and when livestock may be transitioned to organic dairy production and how transitioned animals are managed within the organic dairy system. Now, all organic dairy livestock producers will have the confidence and certainty they are operating in a fair and competitive market."
“Consumers of dairy that carry the USDA Certified Organic Seal can trust that those products meet their expectations for how organic dairy products are produced,” Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Jenny Lester Moffitt said, according to the press release. “At the same time, the rule announced today also ensures new organic producers have a fair way to enter the market.”
The new rule is being administered by USDA’s National Organic Programwhich will ensure dairy livestock operations transitioning to organic or starting a new organic farm are allowed to transition non-organic animals one time. It will also prohibit organic dairies from sourcing any transitioned animals.
