Transcript ORGANICS - AgEBB - Agricultural Electronic Bulletin Board

National Center for
Appropriate Technology
www.ncat.org
ATTRA
(Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas)
National Sustainable Agriculture
Information Service
www.attra.ncat.org
800-346-9140
NEED TO KNOW
INFORMATION FOR ORGANIC
CROP PRODUCTION
Prepared by George Kuepper, Program Specialist
The National Center for Appropriate Technology’s
ATTRA Project
© 2005
Highly Recommended:
NCAT’s
Organic Crops Workbook
http://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/PDF/cropsworkbook.pdf
For a Print Copy Call:
1-800-346-9140
What Does “Organic” Mean
• A production system that “respond[s] to site-specific
conditions by integrating cultural, biological, and
mechanical practices that foster cycling of resources,
promote ecological balance, and conserve biodiversity”
• A production system that
meets all the requirements
of the National Organic
Program Regulations as
defined in 7 CFR Part 205
What’s Required
• An interest in environmentally friendly
farming
• Willingness to conform to a standard
• Designated acreage [205.202(c)]
• 3-year conversion i.e. no prohibited materials
applied [§205.202(b)]
Organic History & Philosophy
• Began in the 1920s
in Europe as an
alternative to a
wide array of farm
problems
• Soil-based system
emphasizing soil
humus
management
HEALTHY SOCIETY
HEALTHY PEOPLE
HEALTHY FOOD
HEALTHY SOIL
Myth
Organic Farming
is simply
agriculture
as it was
practiced before
the era of
commercial
agricultural
chemicals
Reality
Organic Farming
is a deliberate
approach to
farming based
on regeneration
and the
promotion of life
and health
in the soil
Organic Farming employs
many traditional strategies
—such as crop rotation,
green manuring, composting,
and fertilizing with organic
wastes—
that serve as cornerstone
practices for sustainable
agricultural systems
The use of regenerative
soil building practices
and the maintenance of
biodiversity makes
most conventional
pesticides and fertilizers
unnecessary and even
counterproductive
Feed The Soil,
Not The Plant
— An Old Saying Among Organic Farmers
The
Soil
Food
Web
Biochemical
Processes Carried on
by the Soil Food Web
(earthworms, insects,
fungi, bacteria, etc.)
Parent
Rock
Material
The Soil Food Web is
continually fed on the
residues of plants,
animal remains and
wastes, and the bodies
of the various organisms that make up the
Web
Soluble Minerals
Organic Compounds
Plant Root
Nutrient
Absorption
Plant Nutrition Under Natural Conditions
Biochemical
Processes
in the
Rhizosphere.
The Soil
Food Web
Parent
Rock
Material
Conventional
Soluble
Fertilizers
Soluble Minerals
Organic Compounds
Plant Root
Nutrient
Absorption
Conventional Approach To Plant Nutrition
Organic Materials
And Methods
Biochemical
Processes
in the
Rhizosphere.
The Soil
Food Web
Parent
Rock
Material
Legumes in Rotation
Sod Crops in Rotation
Green Manures
Livestock Manures
Natural Fertilizers
Biological Inoculants
Soluble Minerals
Organic Compounds
Organic Approach To Plant Nutrition
Plant Root
Nutrient
Absorption
The Two Faces of Organic Farming
• A Biologicallybased Production
System based on
Natural Principles
and Demonstrating
a High Degree of
Sustainability
• A System that
Preserves the
Integrity of Organic
Production from
Contamination with
Prohibited
Substances and
Commingling with
Non-Organic
Products
Soil Fertility Practices for
Organic Farming
•
•
•
•
•
Crop Rotation Specifically Required §205.205
Cover Crops & Green Manures
Composts and Manures
Monitor & Provide Adequate Minerals
Supplementary Organic Fertilizers
THE MINERAL WHEEL
Figure from: Holliday, R.J. 2002. Let your animals teach you nutrition. Organic Broadcaster. May–June. p. 4–5.
Compost Rules
For Manure-Based Compost
• Initial feedstock mix must have a C:N ratio
between 25:1 and 40:1 [§205.203(c)(2)(i)]
• Each batch must maintain a temperature
between 131º F and 170º F for 3 days when
using in-vessel or static pile systems
[§205.203(c)(2)(ii)]
• Each batch must maintain a temperature
between 131º F and 170º F for 15 days when
using a windrow system; the windrow must be
turned 5X during that period [§205.203(c)(2)(iii)]
Manure Rules
When Applied to Food Crops
• Uncomposted manure must be applied and
incorporated not less than 120 days prior to
the harvest of a crop whose edible portion has
direct soil contact (i.e. most vegetable crops)
[§205.203(c)(1)(ii)]
• Uncomposted manure must be applied and
incorporated not less than 90 days prior to the
harvest of a crop whose edible portion does
not have direct soil contact [§205.203(c)(1)(ii)]
Grey Areas in the Compost &
Manure Regulations
•
•
•
•
Processed manure products
Compost teas and extracts
Manure-based vermicompost/worm castings
Bat or sea bird guano
Best advice: ASK YOUR CERTIFIER
Soil Amendments and Fertilizers:
What You May Not Use
Prohibited
Most conventional fertilizers
Biosolids (sewage sludge) [§205.105(g)]
Ash from manure burning [§205.602(a)]
Contaminated organic materials (leather
meal, cottonseed meal, & poultry litter are
often suspect)
GMO soil inoculants
Soil Amendments, Fertilizers, &
Compost Feedstock:
What You May Use
•
•
•
•
Natural Materials
Manures
Plant materials (residues, seed meals, kelp meal)
Animal by-products (bone meal, blood meal)
Natural rock powders (aglime, rock phosphate,
greensand, gypsum, granite meal, K-Mag®, potassium
sulfate)
• Wood ash
Soil Amendments, Fertilizers, &
Compost Feedstock:
What You May Use
•
•
•
•
Synthetic Materials [§205.601]
Liquid fish products (some commercial forms)
Seaweed extracts (some commercial forms)
Humic acids (some commercial forms)
Elemental sulfur
Soil Amendments, Fertilizers, &
Compost Feedstock:
What You May Use
Restricted Materials
• Micronutrients (soluble boron, sulfates, carbonates,
oxides, silicates, and lignon sulfonate chelates.
Deficiency must be documented) [§205.601(j)(6)]
• Sodium nitrate (no more than 20% of crop’s total
nitrate requirement) [§205.602(h)]
• Potassium chloride (mined source only; no
chloride accumulation) [§205.602(g)]
Help In Sorting Through The
Materials Mess: Fertilizers, etc.
• Read the Regulations (www.ams.usda.gov/nop/)
 §205.203 Fertility & Nutrient Mgt. Standard
 §205.601 Nat’l List—Synthetics Allowed
 §205.602 Nat’l List—Nonsynthetics Prohibited
• OMRI Listing (www.omri.org/)
• WSDA Brand Name Materials List
(http://agr.wa.gov/FoodAnimal/Organic/MaterialsLists.htm)
• CONSULT YOUR CERTIFIER
Organic Strategy For Weed & Pest
Management
I.
Organic System Effects
II.
Traditional Organic Practices
III. Allowed Pesticides
I. Organic System Effects On Pests
• Systemic Practices:
rotation, cover cropping, organic fertilization, adapted and
resistant cultivars, composting and basic sanitation practices
• Systemic Effects:
 innate and induced resistance/tolerance
 biocontrol of pests and diseases in the soil
 biocontrol of above ground pests
 life cycles of weeds and pests disrupted
 weed seedbank reduced
 beneficial shift in weed populations
II. Traditional Organic Pest Control Practices
Weeds
cultivation
organic mulches
mowing
grazing
weeder geese
handweeding
flame weeding
plastic mulch
Insects & Disease
beneficial habitats
augmentation of
beneficials
physical barriers
nonsynthetic lures, traps,
repellents
adjusting timing
III. Allowed Pesticides
• Naturals (nonsynthetics)
minerals (diatomaceous earth, baking soda)
biologicals (Bt, B. bassiana)
botanicals (rotenone, neem, pyrethrum)
• Synthetics (on the National List only)
minerals (sulfur, copper)
soaps (insecticidal, herbicidal)
horticultural oils (narrow range, superior)
pheromones
Pesticide
Treadmill
A:
Secondary
Pest
Problems
Figure from: Best Management Practices: Horticultural
Crops, http://www.gov.on.ca/OMAFRA/english/
environment/hort/basics3.htm
Pesticide Treadmill B:
Resistance
Figure from: Best Management Practices: Horticultural Crops, http://www.gov.on.ca/OMAFRA/english/
environment/hort/basics3.htm
The Materials Mess Continued:
Pitfalls To Avoid
• nicotine, cryolite, & strychnine—prohibited
[§205.602]
• prohibited surfactants (detergents, Basic-H®)
• herbicidal soap—ornamentals only
[§205.601(b)(1)]
• prohibited inert ingredients
CONSULT YOUR CERTIFIER
Help In Sorting Through The
Materials Mess: Pesticides
• Read the Regulations (www.ams.usda.gov/nop/)
 §205.206 Pest Mgt. Standard
 §205.601 Nat’l List—Synthetics Allowed
 §205.602 Nat’l List—Nonsynthetics Prohibited
• OMRI Listing (www.omri.org/)
• WSDA Brand Name Materials List
(http://agr.wa.gov/FoodAnimal/Organic/MaterialsLists.htm)
• US EPA Pesticide Labeling
• CONSULT YOUR CERTIFIER
Seed And Planting Stock
• Organic seed and planting stock must be used
[§205.204(a)]
• If not commercially available, untreated seed or
planting stock may be used; no GMOs
[§205.204(a)(1)]
• Conventional seed treatments are prohibited,
unless required by Federal or State regulations
[§205.204(a)(5)]
• Organic transplants must be used [§205.204(a)]
Seed And Planting Stock:
Avoiding the Pitfalls
• Organic requirements apply to cover crops
• Seed for sprouting MUST be organic [§205.204(a)(1)]
• Inoculants must be non-GE
• Perennial planting stock—consult your certifier
[§205.204(a)(4)] has tricky language
Wild Crop Harvesting [§205.207]
• Harvest area must be:
Designated
Protected from contamination
Free of prohibited substances for 3 years
• Harvesting must be:
Sustainable
Environmentally sound
Ensuring Organic Integrity
• Adjoining land use
Isolation
Buffers
Drainage diversion
Signage
Notification &
accommodation
Graphic from Four Winds Farm, River Falls, Wisconsin
Vertical
Ideal Field Buffer
Horizontal
Ensuring Organic Integrity
• Construction materials
Treated lumber is prohibited as
per §205.206(f)
• Commingling issues
Record Keeping [§205.103]
Organic Farm Records Must:
•
•
•
•
•
be well-adapted to the business being
conducted,
disclose all activities and transactions in
adequate detail,
be maintained for not less than five years
beyond their creation,
be sufficient to demonstrate compliance with
federal regulations, and
be available for inspection and copying during
normal business hours.
Documents To Keep
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Field histories
Field activities
Materials applications
Seed documents
Input labels and documents
Soil & water test reports
Harvest and sales records
Organic Certification
• Certification is required of all operations
that sell, label, or represent their products
as organic.
• Operations selling less than $5000 of
organic products annually are exempt from
certification.
• Both exempt and non-exempt organic
operations must comply with the organic
standard.
Steps To Certification
I.
Find a suitable certifier (www.ams.usda.gov/
nop/CertifyingAgents/Accredited.html)
II.
Complete application and Organic
System Plan
III. Completeness review
IV. On-farm inspection
V. Final review
A reminder…
Organic Certification is
Process Certification
For the Non-Certified Producer
• Cannot use USDA Seal
• Cannot sell for organic processing
• Organic System Plan required
• Sorting through the materials mess