OFA Comment Submission in response to NOSB proposal on field corn seed GMO contamination transparency |
The National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) is an advisory board to the USDA National Organic Program (NOP). The NOSB is a multi-stakeholder volunteer board that advises the USDA NOP.
At the October 2018 NOSB Meeting in St. Paul, MN, the NOSB discussed a possible pilot project to measure organic seed purity (GMO contamination). The goal of the proposal is to aid farmers in their choices of seed and provide farmers with more information about levels of GMO contamination in field corn seed. The proposed pilot project is limited to field corn seed. The pilot project was drafted by an organic farmer and longtime organic inspector.
The proposal was sent back to the NOSB materials subcommittee for more work. They would like more feedback from organic corn farmers on this proposal so that they have more farmer input leading into the Spring 2019 NOSB meeting.
The proposal was sent back to the NOSB materials subcommittee for more work. They would like more feedback from organic corn farmers on this proposal so that they have more farmer input leading into the Spring 2019 NOSB meeting.
In early December, the USDA will open a Federal Docket to collect comments on this proposal for the NOSB meeting. However, until the docket is opened, you may submit your comment using this form and then Organic Farmers Association will submit all collected farmer-comments to the Federal Register, or you may submit them directly on the docket: on or before JANUARY 2, 2019.