CCOF Blog

CCOF Future Organic Farmers grantee Jason Racine plans to use his formal education to bring into full bloom his goal of creating an inspiring, diverse, community-centered farm. Products will range from annual rotating vegetables and cut flowers to kiwi vines, fruit trees, and even mushrooms! Racine aims to complete his food science and technology degree, with minors in horticulture and…

As of January 2022, California has begun implementing SB 1383, a new state law that tackles the climate crisis by recycling and composting food and yard waste around the state. Landfills are the third-largest source of methane in California. Organic waste contributes 20 percent of that methane. By composting organic materials like food waste, the state aims to curb climate pollutants…

Nearly every state in the United States has a cottage food law that allows for the sale of low-risk foods produced in a home kitchen. However, these laws vary widely between states. Differences include types of products that can be made and sold, annual sales limits, and how or where the food can be sold. Join us for a webinar on April 27 that will cover the specifics of the cottage food laws in California and Washington states. Dr. Erin DiCaprio from the University of California, Davis and Dr. Stephanie Smith from Washington State University will review details on cottage food…

A new report issued by the California Department of Public Health’s State Organic Program shows staggering growth in organic product sales between 2020 and 2021, from $14.8 billion to $34.5 billion.

Median annual gross sales also more than doubled, from $170,000 in 2020 to $350,000 in 2021. Analysis of registrants by sales volume reveals that the number of registrants paying the highest fee—700 for businesses with gross sales above $2.5 million—increased from 603 in 2020 to 690 in 2021.

At the same time, the number of organic registrants with the State Organic Program…

CCOF is partnering with Assemblymember Maienschein on California bill AB 2499 to expand access to organic certification. This work builds on our advocacy to incentivize schools to procure organic food. 

Our bill, AB 2499, does the following:

Nelson Hawkins, 2021 Future Organic Farmer recipient, was always fascinated by plants and animals, and a career in agriculture felt like a perfect way to combine those two passions. Having studied sustainable agriculture at UC Davis, Hawkins is currently pursuing additional education from the Center for Land-Based Learning in Sacramento, California. Hawkins is also the founder and…

John Fagundes was a carpenter with a small cattle herd living in Northern California. When the COVID-19 pandemic shut down major meat processing plants across the United States, and meat cases sat empty in grocery stores, John knew that small ranchers like him and his neighbors could feed their local communities. But for years prior to the pandemic, small producers across…

“I was on the verge of losing my farm.” These words haunted Maria Narez of Narez Organic Vegetables as she navigated the complexities of becoming certified organic. To earn organic certification, farmers cannot apply prohibited synthetic pesticides to the land for three years prior to their first organic harvest. Transitioning farmers must make significant…

The National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) has released the agenda and meeting materials for its April 26–28, 2022 meeting and will accept written comments on agenda items through April 1.

Signups to provide oral comment during webinars on April 19 and 21 are also open. Visit the USDA’s website to register for an oral comment slot (scroll to the bottom of the page).

The NOSB is a federal advisory board that comprises volunteers from the organic community who advise the National Organic Program and the Secretary of Agriculture on organic production, handling, and processing…

The California Department of Food and Agriculture’s (CDFA’s) Farm to School Incubator Grant Program is opening the cafeteria door to more organic producers!

For the first time, schools will be incentivized to buy food from producers who are certified organic or transitioning to organic. Organic producers will be prioritized for grants to cover expenses related to food production, processing, and/or distribution for the school food market, including organic certification costs. Small and midsize farms and disadvantaged producers will also receive prioritization. 

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Please join Edgar Mendoza Samaniego of CCOF-certified Sol Seeker Farm and Ann Baier from the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT) for a conversation in Spanish on pasture-raised chickens. Mendoza Samaniego dives into his production methods on his farm, as well as details on his operation, and the steps taken to get to where they are now. 

Baier is a sustainable agriculture specialist who has been working in NCAT’s Western Regional Office since 2002. She specializes in organic certification, recordkeeping, and pasture-raised poultry, and works closely with…

Save the date for a western states webinar, 10–11 a.m. (PST) on March 11, on a revision proposed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to Subpart E of its Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) Produce Safety Rule that would change the pre-harvest agricultural water requirements for covered produce (other than sprouts).
 
The webinar is co-hosted by the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) and California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) for the western states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah.…

WASHINGTON, March 1, 2022 – This week, the USDA announced supplemental American Rescue Plan Act funding for the Local Agriculture Market Program (LAMP). In fiscal year 2022, LAMP will receive a total of $97 million in competitive grant funding to help local and regional food entities develop, coordinate, and expand producer-to-consumer marketing, local and regional food markets, and local food enterprises. Of the $97 million, LAMP’s Farmers Market and Local Food Promotion Program (FMLFPP) will receive $57 million, and Regional Food System Partnerships (RFSP) will receive $40 million.…

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is offering at least three types of tax credit as part of COVID-19 relief, including Credit for Sick and Family Leave, the Employee Retention Credit, and Paid Leave Credit for Vaccines. 

The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP) allows small and midsize employers and certain governmental employers to claim refundable tax credits that reimburse them for the cost of providing paid sick and family leave to their employees due to COVID-19, including leave taken by employees to receive or recover from COVID-19 vaccinations. 

The ARP tax…

Meagan Farrell, 2021 Future Organic Farmer grant recipient, was born and raised on a dairy farm in Wisconsin. To broaden her knowledge and build on her heritage, Farrell has enrolled in the Dairy Grazing Apprenticeship program at the Managed Grazing Innovation Center to help steer the family farm toward organic production. Farrell…