OEFFA and OEFFA Certification Board Meetings 10 October 2010 ...

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NOP Representatives Tour OEFFA-
Certified Organic Livestock Operations
Six months have now passed since the
USDA’s National Organic Program (NOP)
issued the Livestock Access to Pasture Rule,
further substantiating the requirements
regarding the active management of certified
organic livestock on pasture. In an effort to
gather information on how certifiers and
organic livestock producers are working to
implement the new rule, NOP
representatives from Washington, D.C.
came to Ohio to visit three of OEFFA’s own
certified organic farms on August 19, 2010.
Kate Schmidt, Lexie Stoia Pierce, Kelli Natale, and
Michelle Gregg-Skinner of OEFFA Certification “put
out to pasture” on the Weaver Family Farm.
At the end of the day, the NOP indicated
that OEFFA had developed a strong system
for equipping its certified producers with
information and tools for understanding the
new rule and developing successful pasturemanagement
plans.
Melissa Bailey, Mark Keating, and Miles McEvoy of
the NOP with Verlin Weaver on his family’s certified
organic dairy farm in Dalton, OH.
Members of the OEFFA Certification staff
accompanied Miles McEvoy, NOP Deputy
Administrator, Melissa Bailey, NOP
Standards Division Director, and Mark
Keating, NOP Agricultural Marketing
Specialist, for the day’s farm tours. The
group observed both ruminant livestock and
poultry on these farms, walked the pastures,
and discussed pasture-management and
recordkeeping strategies with each of the
producers.
Melissa Bailey & Mark Keating of the NOP discuss
pasture-management plans with OEFFA
Certification’s Livestock Specialist, Paul Dutter.
The NOP will use the information collected
during their visit to Ohio to develop further
guidance to help OEFFA and the other
accredited certifiers fully and consistently
implement the Livestock Access to Pasture
Rule.