It is the purpose of this chapter- (1) to establish national standards governing the marketing of certain agricultural products as organically produced products; (2) to assure consumers that organically produced products meet a consistent standard; and (3) to facilitate interstate commerce in fresh and processed food that is organically produced. 7 U.S.C. § 6501 Pub. L. 101-624, title XXI, §21022102,, 104 Stat. 3935. STATUTORY NOTES AND RELATED SUBSIDIARIES SHORT TITLE Pub. L. 101-624, title XXI
To be sold or labeled as an organically produced agricultural product under this chapter, an agricultural product shall- (1) have been produced and handled without the use of synthetic chemicals, except as otherwise provided in this chapter; (2) except as otherwise provided in this chapter and excluding livestock, not be produced on land to which any prohibited substances, including synthetic chemicals, have been applied during the 3 years immediately preceding the harvest of the agricultural products;
(a) Except for the exempt operations described in § 205.101 , each operation or portion of an operation that produces or handles agricultural products intended to be sold, labeled, or represented as "100 percent organic," "organic," or "made with organic (specified ingredients or food group(s))" must be certified according to the provisions of subpart E of this part and must meet all other applicable requirements of this part. (b) Any production or handling operation or specified portion of a production
Any field or farm parcel from which harvested crops are intended to be sold, labeled, or represented as "organic," must: (a) Have been managed in accordance with the provisions of §§ 205.203 through 205.206 ; (b) Have had no prohibited substances, as listed in § 205.105 , applied to it for a period of 3 years immediately preceding harvest of the crop; and (c) Have distinct, defined boundaries and buffer zones such as runoff diversions to prevent the unintended application of a prohibited substance
(a) When the certifying agent has reason to believe, based on a review of the information specified in § 205.402 or § 205.404 , that an applicant for certification is not able to comply or is not in compliance with the requirements of this part, the certifying agent must provide a written notification of noncompliance to the applicant. When correction of a noncompliance is not possible, a notification of noncompliance and a notification of denial of certification may be combined in one notification
A person seeking certification of a production or handling operation under this subpart must submit an application for certification to a certifying agent. The application must include the following information: (a) An organic production or handling system plan, as required in § 205.201 ; (b) The name of the person completing the application; the applicant's business name, address, and telephone number; and, when the applicant is a corporation, the name, address, and telephone number of the person