Sign Up For OPN Connect
1. Feds Spend $3.8 million to find National List Organic Alternatives
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) said Thursday it is offering $3.8 million in grants to "address critical issues" related to organic agriculture. One area of focus is the "establishment of cultural practices and other allowable alternatives to substances recommended for removal from the National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances," the USDA said.
The National List identifies the synthetic substances that may be used and the nonsynthetic (natural) substances that may not be used in organic crop and livestock production. The list also identifies a limited number of non-organic substances that may be used in or on processed organic products.
Read more here.
2. Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) Registers IGI CO2 for Organic Use
The WSDA issued a registration certificate to IGI, LLC for the use of IGI CO2 at organic production and processing farms and facilities. The certificate states that IGI Carbon Dioxide has been verified to comply with the USDA National Organic Standards (7 CFR Part 205). The approved treatment types are for crop production aid (CPA), disease and pest control (DPC), fertilizer and soil amendment (FSA), livestock production aid and processing and handling (PH). This marks the first time that Organic facilities have had a registered solution for their pest control needs. IGI Organic Carbon Dioxide combined with IGI's delivery systems provides a single source for multiple fumigation needs.
Read more here.
3. Organically Grown Saves Time and Energy by Upgrading to a New Cooling System
The kind of steady growth Organically Grown has experienced carries with it new problems every step of the way, and in turn, requires new solutions to those problems. According to Anthony Seran, Organically Grown’s Project Manager, his newest solution is the Jet-Ready Precooler from Global Cooling Inc.
4. Albertsons Companies’ O Organics Hits $1 Billion Brand Milestone
Albertsons Companies today announced that its popular Own Brands label, O Organics, has become a $1 billion brand, a major milestone for one of the nation’s largest brands of USDA-certified organic products.
5. Sprouts Farmers Market Opens First Store on South Carolina
Shoppers in the Upstate will have another choice for fresh groceries when Sprouts Farmers Market opens in the second quarter of this year. The store — to be located at 2200 Woodruff Rd., in Simpsonville — will be the first in South Carolina and one of approximately 30 new stores to open nationwide of the chain.
Learn more.
“The rich nations must use their vast resources of wealth to develop the underdeveloped, school the unschooled, and feed the unfed. Ultimately a great nation is a compassionate nation. No individual or nation can be great if it does not have a concern for ‘the least of these.’”
Dr. King, Nobel Peace Prize address, 1964
