PRIA, Government Policy, Made Personal

Summary

Defines common words used in the national organic rules so people know what the words mean. It gives short meanings for terms used in the program and points to a few related law sections. Agricultural product: any farm commodity or food for people or animals, raw or processed, including animal-derived items. Botanical pesticides: pesticides made from plants. Certifying agent: the State’s top agricultural official or an accredited person or group who certifies organic farms or handlers; for foreign work it also includes those accredited under section 6514(d) or by a foreign government under a U.S. equivalency agreement. Certified organic farm / certified organic handling operation: a farm or handling business (or part of one) that a certifier has approved as following the organic rules. Crop year: the normal growing season set by the Secretary of Agriculture. Governing State official: the State agricultural chief who runs an organic certification program. Handle / handler / handling operation: sell, process, package, or store farm products; handlers are businesses that do this (not final retailers who only sell). Livestock: animals used for food or food production, and similar nonplant life. National List: the approved and banned substances list in section 6517. National organic program import certificate: a form that proves an imported product meets section 6514(c); it must show origin, destination, the certifier, the harmonized tariff code if one exists, total weight, and which organic standard applies, and it can’t ask for more than an equivalency agreement allows. Organic plan: the written plan agreed to by a producer or handler and the certifier describing how they will follow organic practices. Organically produced: made and handled under these rules. Person: an individual or any business or group. Pesticide: a substance defined as a pesticide in the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. 136 et seq.). Processing: actions that change food like cooking, drying, mixing, extracting, fermenting, preserving, packaging, and similar manufacturing steps. Producer: someone who grows or produces food or feed. Secretary: the Secretary of Agriculture. State organic certification program: a program that meets section 6506 and is approved by the Secretary to ensure products labeled organic are produced and handled organically. Synthetic: a substance made by chemical processes or by chemically changing natural materials, but not those made by natural biological processes.

Title 7, §6502

Agriculture, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

As used in this chapter:

(1)Agricultural product

The term “agricultural product” means any agricultural commodity or product, whether raw or processed, including any commodity or product derived from livestock that is marketed in the United States for human or livestock consumption.

(2)Botanical pesticides

The term “botanical pesticides” means natural pesticides derived from plants.

(3)Certifying agent

(A)In general

The term “certifying agent” means the chief executive officer of a State or, in the case of a State that provides for the Statewide election of an official to be responsible solely for the administration of the agricultural operations of the State, such official, and any person (including private entities) who is accredited by the Secretary as a certifying agent for the purpose of certifying a farm or handling operation as a certified organic farm or handling operation in accordance with this chapter.

(B)Foreign operations

When used in the context of a certifying agent operating in a foreign country, the term “certifying agent” includes any person (including a private entity)—

(i)accredited in accordance with section 6514(d) of this title; or

(ii)accredited by a foreign government that acted under an equivalency agreement negotiated between the United States and the foreign government from which the agricultural product is imported.

(4)Certified organic farm

The term “certified organic farm” means a farm, or portion of a farm, or site where agricultural products or livestock are produced, that is certified by the certifying agent under this chapter as utilizing a system of organic farming as described by this chapter.

(5)Certified organic handling operation

The term “certified organic handling operation” means any operation, or portion of any handling operation, that is certified by the certifying agent under this chapter as utilizing a system of organic handling as described under this chapter.

(6)Crop year

The term “crop year” means the normal growing season for a crop as determined by the Secretary.

(7)Governing State official

The term “governing State official” means the chief executive official of a State or, in the case of a State that provides for the Statewide election of an official to be responsible solely for the administration of the agricultural operations of the State, such official, who administers an organic certification program under this chapter.

(8)Handle

The term “handle” means to sell, process or package agricultural products.

(9)Handler

The term “handler” means any person engaged in the business of handling agricultural products, except such term shall not include final retailers of agricultural products that do not process agricultural products.

(10)Handling operation

The term “handling operation” means any operation or portion of an operation (except final retailers of agricultural products that do not process agricultural products) that—

(A)receives or otherwise acquires agricultural products; and

(B)processes, packages, or stores such products.

(11)Livestock

The term “livestock” means any cattle, sheep, goats, swine, poultry, equine animals used for food or in the production of food, fish used for food, wild or domesticated game, or other nonplant life.

(12)National List

The term “National List” means a list of approved and prohibited substances as provided for in section 6517 of this title.

(13)National organic program import certificate

The term “national organic program import certificate” means a form developed for purposes of the program under this chapter—

(A)to provide documentation sufficient to verify that an agricultural product imported for sale in the United States satisfies the requirement under section 6514(c) of this title;

(B)which shall include, at a minimum, information sufficient to indicate, with respect to the agricultural product—

(i)the origin;

(ii)the destination;

(iii)the certifying agent issuing the national organic program import certificate;

(iv)the harmonized tariff code, if a harmonized tariff code exists for the agricultural product;

(v)the total weight; and

(vi)the organic standard to which the agricultural product is certified; and

(C)that is not more than otherwise required under an equivalency agreement negotiated between the United States and the foreign government.

(14)Organic plan

The term “organic plan” means a plan of management of an organic farming or handling operation that has been agreed to by the producer or handler and the certifying agent and that includes written plans concerning all aspects of agricultural production or handling described in this chapter including crop rotation and other practices as required under this chapter.

(15)Organically produced

The term “organically produced” means an agricultural product that is produced and handled in accordance with this chapter.

(16)Person

The term “person” means an individual, group of individuals, corporation, association, organization, cooperative, or other entity.

(17)Pesticide

The term “pesticide” means any substance which alone, in chemical combination, or in any formulation with one or more substances, is defined as a pesticide in the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. 136 et seq.).

(18)Processing

The term “processing” means cooking, baking, heating, drying, mixing, grinding, churning, separating, extracting, cutting, fermenting, eviscerating, preserving, dehydrating, freezing, or otherwise manufacturing, and includes the packaging, canning, jarring, or otherwise enclosing food in a container.

(19)Producer

The term “producer” means a person who engages in the business of growing or producing food or feed.

(20)Secretary

The term “Secretary” means the Secretary of Agriculture.

(21)State organic certification program

The term “State organic certification program” means a program that meets the requirements of section 6506 of this title, is approved by the Secretary, and that is designed to ensure that a product that is sold or labeled as “organically produced” under this chapter is produced and handled using organic methods.

(22)Synthetic

The term “synthetic” means a substance that is formulated or manufactured by a chemical process or by a process that chemically changes a substance extracted from naturally occurring plant, animal, or mineral sources, except that such term shall not apply to substances created by naturally occurring biological processes.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, referred to in par. (17), is act June 25, 1947, ch. 125, as amended generally by Pub. L. 92–516, Oct. 21, 1972, 86 Stat. 973, which is classified generally to subchapter II (§ 136 et seq.) of chapter 6 of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see

Short Title

note set out under section 136 of this title and Tables.

Amendments

2018—Par. (3). Pub. L. 115–334, § 10104(b)(1), designated existing provisions as subpar. (A), inserted heading, and added subpar. (B). Pars. (13) to (22). Pub. L. 115–334, § 10104(b)(2), (3), added par. (13) and redesignated former pars. (13) to (21) as (14) to (22), respectively.

§6502 Definitions