Agri-View has a good piece up right now for those considering getting certified. The piece offers some excellent advice, such as knowing your motivation to go certified organic, abundant paperwork considerations and a discussion about organic exemption.

One of the best pieces of advice surrounds how to approach your organic system plan. Cissy Bowman, CEO of Indiana Certified Organic and an organic certifier notes:

"The application is your organic systems plan. Almost all certifiers send the application for you to write out what your plans are to farm organically on your farm: how you're going to maintain fertility management, crop rotation, weed and pest management and treat any livestock. All of those different pieces make up your organic system plan. Make it carefully; you really want to put your thoughts into it to make sure you're telling the certifier what you're really planning on doing. This is our basis for determining whether or not you can comply with the national organic standards."

Excellent points, especially if you're new to the process. Check out the entire article: Certifier's perspective: Organic production requires planning, dedication.

Idaho has long set their own additional standards for organic certification, such as charging fees for chemical residue analysis and attendance in organic education programs. Now however, Idaho is rethinking their strategy, and cutting back requirements to better match up with federal organic certification guidelines.

The new state rules adopted by an Idaho legislative committee will still be as strict as federal rules, but not stricter and best of all, the new rules will help streamline the certification process and will be less cost-prohibitive for Idaho's organic producers, saving them thousands of dollars.

Idaho producers will no longer be charged for chemical residue analysis, instead, as federal guidelines permit, the costs of such analysis will be picked up by accredited certifying agents. Additionally, the July 1st deadline for certification has been removed, allowing producers more time to achieve certification goals.

The new rules were meet with unanimously approved by the Senate Agricultural Affairs Committee on January 19. Unless challenged on the House side they'll become law.

The National Organic Program (NOP) has recently added some new documents to the their Program Handbook, so it's time to update your own download. Included new docs in the NOP Program Handbook Accreditation Section are...

• NOP 2024 Information Submission Requirements for Certifying Agents
• NOP 2024-1A Work Instruction - Annual Report Review
• NOP 2608 Instruction - Responding to Noncompliances

NOP has also posted some brand new training modules, including:

• Part I & II Label Review & Exercise
• Adverse Action Notices Review & Exercise
• Review of Procedures to Submit Questions to the NOP
• GMO Review

Learn more about the Program Handbook in general or head over to the NOP website to make sure you've got the latest version of the handbook.

We know all the benefits of organics. We've seen that organic sales just keep right on growing. So, how come there may be organic shortages soon and why are more folks still growing conventional products?

It could be that crop insurance for organic growers is simply out of reach. According to a new Bloomberg article, further expansion for some organic farms is being hampered by the federal crop insurance program designed to help farmers. Representative Chellie Pingree, a Maine Democrat who serves on the House Agriculture Committee tells Bloomberg, "Growth in organic-farm acreage is being held back by government programs that haven't kept up with the shift in agriculture, including crop-insurance policies that aren't tailored to organic producers the way they are for large Iowa corn farmers."

Some think more funding is more than necessary, but doable. Many do think that the Congress debated farm bill for 2012 will need to cover issues that can help keep production costs for organic food down and encourage increased acreage. Others are skeptical, such as Bloomberg contact, Josh Sewell, a policy analyst with Taxpayers for Common Sense, a Washington- based organization who says increased subsidies, including any for crop insurance are likely to face major opposition.

If high production costs are affecting your business, this is a great read to gather both sides of the issue.

+ Organic Crop Insurance Cost Spoils Growth