Title HSC, California Health & Safety Code

This article shall be known, and may be cited as, the California Organic Food and Farming Act. (Amended by Stats. 2020, Ch. 302, Sec. 9. (SB 406) Effective September 29, 2020.)

This article shall be interpreted in conjunction with Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 46000) of Division 17 of the Food and Agricultural Code and the regulations promulgated by the National Organic Program (NOP) (Section 6517 of the federal Organic Foods Production Act of 199…

The director shall enforce regulations promulgated by the National Organic Program (Section 6517 of the federal Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. Sec. 6501 et seq.)), provisions of this article, and Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 46000) of Division 17 of the Foo…

Unless otherwise defined pursuant to the National Organic Program, the following words and phrases, when used in this article, shall have the following meanings: (a) “Animal food” means any food intended to be fed to any household animal, including, but not limited to, cats, or d…

Water, including substances dissolved in water, shall not be a prohibited material, even if it contains incidental contamination from a prohibited material, if the prohibited material was not added by, or under the direction or control of, the person in control of the product. (A…

Except as otherwise provided in this article, no product shall be sold as organic pursuant to this article unless it is produced according to regulations promulgated by the NOP, and consists entirely of products manufactured only from raw or processed agricultural products except…

Materials acceptable in this state are those outlined by regulations promulgated by the NOP and the provisions of this article. (Amended by Stats. 2002, Ch. 533, Sec. 45. Effective January 1, 2003.)

No aquaculture, fish, or seafood product, including, but not limited to, farmed and wild caught species, shall be labeled or represented as “organic” until formal organic certification standards have been developed and implemented by the United States Department of Agriculture’s …

(a) No product handled, processed, sold, advertised, represented, or offered for sale in this state, shall be sold as organic unless it also is prominently labeled and invoiced with similar terminology as set forth by regulations promulgated by the NOP. (b) No product may be adve…

The director may adopt regulations allowing or prohibiting the use of substances in the processing of products that are exempt or excluded from certification under the NOP, and animal food and cosmetics sold as organic. (Amended by Stats. 2002, Ch. 533, Sec. 49. Effective January…

(a) Cosmetic products sold, labeled, or represented as organic or made with organic ingredients shall contain, at least 70 percent organically produced ingredients. (b) The percentage of all organically produced ingredients in an agricultural product sold, labeled, or represented…

Multi-ingredient cosmetic products sold as organic in California with less than 70 percent organically produced ingredients, by weight or by fluid volume, excluding water and salt, may only identify the organic content as follows: (a) By identifying each organically produced ingr…

(a) All persons who handle products sold as organic shall keep accurate and specific records of the following: (1) Except when sold to the consumer, the name and address of all persons, to whom or from whom the product is sold, purchased, or otherwise transferred, the quantity of…

(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any producer, handler, processor, or retailer of products sold as organic shall immediately make available for inspection by, and shall upon request, within 72 hours of the request, provide a copy to, the director, the Attorney Gene…

(a) Following initial United States Department of Agriculture accreditation of certifying agents as provided in Section 6514 of Title 7 of the United States Code and upon implementation of the federal organic certification requirement pursuant to the federal Organic Foods Product…

Prior to initial certification of a producer, a registered certification organization shall conduct at least one initial physical inspection of the premises where the food to be certified is produced. This inspection shall include the recordkeeping system necessary for compliance…

(a) A registered certification organization shall no less often than, at the end of each calendar quarter, prepare a list by name of all persons whose production or processing of food is certified or pending certification by the certification organization. This list shall be file…

A registered certification organization shall adopt and adhere to a certification plan filed annually and made publicly available. Except in the case of a certification program established pursuant to subdivision (e) of Section 110850, a certification plan shall be filed as part …

Only products that have been handled and processed in accordance with this article may be certified by a registered certification organization. (Amended by Stats. 2002, Ch. 533, Sec. 57. Effective January 1, 2003.)

(a) Every person engaged in this state in the processing or handling of processed products for human consumption, including dietary supplements, alcoholic beverages, and fish or seafood sold as organic (except for processors and handlers of processed meat, fowl, or dairy products…

This article shall apply to all products sold as organic within the state, wherever produced, handled, or processed, and to all products produced, that are handled or processed in the state, wherever sold as organic. (Amended by Stats. 2002, Ch. 533, Sec. 59. Effective January 1,…

This article shall not apply to the term “natural” when used in the labeling or advertising of a product. (Amended by Stats. 2002, Ch. 533, Sec. 60. Effective January 1, 2003.)

(a) It is unlawful for any person to sell, offer for sale, advertise, or label any product in violation of this article. (b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), a person engaged in business as a distributor or retailer of products who in good faith sells, offers for sale, labels, or…

(a) It is unlawful for any person to certify products in violation of this article. (b) It is unlawful for any person to certify products as organic unless duly registered or accredited as a certification organization pursuant to Section 110850. (c) It is unlawful for any person …

(a) It is unlawful for any person to produce, handle, or process products sold as organic unless duly registered pursuant to Section 110875. (b) It is unlawful for any person to willfully make a false statement or representation, or knowingly fail to disclose a fact required to b…

It is unlawful for any person to forge, falsify, fail to retain, fail to obtain, or fail to disclose records pursuant to Sections 110840 and 110845. (Added by Stats. 1995, Ch. 415, Sec. 6. Effective January 1, 1996.)

It is unlawful for any person to do any of the following: (a) Advertise, label, or otherwise represent that any fertilizer or pesticide chemical may be used in connection with the production, processing, or distribution of products sold as organic if that fertilizer or pesticide …

(a) In lieu of prosecution, the director may levy a civil penalty against any person who violates this article, any regulation adopted pursuant to this article, or any regulation promulgated by the NOP in an amount not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) for each violation. …

No fee established and collected pursuant to this article shall exceed the department’s costs of regulating and enforcing the provisions of this article related to the function for which the fee is established. (Added by Stats. 1995, Ch. 415, Sec. 6. Effective January 1, 1996.)

Any fees and civil penalties collected pursuant to this article shall be deposited in the General Fund and, upon appropriation by the Legislature, shall be expended to fulfill the responsibilities of the director as specified in this article. (Added by Stats. 1995, Ch. 415, Sec. …

The director shall, to the extent funds are available, enforce this article applicable to all processors and handlers of processed products sold as organic, including handlers and processors of fish and seafood, cosmetics, and animal food products sold as organic, except for proc…

The director shall maintain in a central location, and make publicly available for inspection and copying, upon request, a list of all penalties levied within the past five years, including the amount of each penalty, the party against whom the penalty was levied, and the nature …

(a) Any person may file a complaint with the director concerning suspected noncompliance with this article by a person over whom the director has responsibility as provided in this article or regulations adopted by the NOP. (b) The director shall, to the extent funds are availabl…

This article shall apply notwithstanding any other provision of law that is inconsistent with this article. Nothing in this article is intended to repeal any other provision of law not inconsistent with this article. (Added by Stats. 1995, Ch. 415, Sec. 6. Effective January 1, 19…

The director may adopt any regulations as are reasonably necessary to assist in the implementation of, or to make more specific, the provisions of, this article. (Added by Stats. 1995, Ch. 415, Sec. 6. Effective January 1, 1996.)

Any reference in law to former Section 26569.11, whether existing or hereinafter enacted, shall be interpreted to refer to this article and Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 46000) of Division 17 of the Food and Agricultural Code as the successor section. (Added by Stats. 1995,…

(a) All organic product regulations and any amendments to those regulations adopted pursuant to the NOP, that are in effect on the date this bill is enacted or that are adopted after that date shall be the organic product regulations of this state. (b) The director may, by regula…

It shall be unlawful for a person to represent in advertising or labeling that the person or the products of the person are registered pursuant to this article. (Amended by Stats. 2002, Ch. 533, Sec. 69. Effective January 1, 2003.)

Annually, the director shall compile and publish and submit to the California Organic Products Advisory Committee a summary of information collected under Section 110875, including, but not limited to, the following: (a) The total number of registrations received under this secti…

Beginning January 1, 2003, the director shall conduct a program of spot inspections of persons required to register pursuant to Section 110875 to verify continuing compliance with this article and the regulations adopted by the NOP according to uniform procedures established by t…

For purposes of this article, the following terms have the following meanings: (a) “Local health officer” means the legally appointed health officer or director of environmental health of the city, county, or city and county, having jurisdiction over the area in which a publicly …

(a) Upon issuance by the office of a site-specific fish or shellfish health advisory pursuant to Section 59011 of this code or Section 13177.5 of the Water Code, a local health officer shall conspicuously post health warnings at public access points to locations where contaminate…

(a) The California Nurse-Midwifery Education Fund is hereby created within the Department of Health Care Access and Information for the purpose of establishing California-based, master’s level, nurse-midwifery education programs within the California State University, the Univers…

(a) The department shall establish competitive application criteria to ensure the optimal sites selection for the education programs within the California State University system or the University of California, including prioritization of programs that serve an area of demonstra…

Any funds, public or private, received for the fund shall supplement, not supplant, any current or future funding to midwifery workforce education programs, including allocations to midwifery education programs administered through the Song-Brown Health Care Workforce Training Ac…

Any license issued under this chapter and the regulations adopted pursuant to it may be suspended or revoked by the director. The director may refuse to issue a license to any applicant for the reasons set forth in Section 44072.1. The proceedings under this article shall be cond…