CCOF Blog
Esta página aún no está disponible en Español.
Written by Laura Mathias on Monday, January 7, 2019
CCOF Certification Services, LLC is seeking a Chief Certification Officer (CCO). This position is responsible to the Management Committee of CCOF Certification Services, LLC for the successful execution of certification programs. The CCO reports to the CEO of CCOF, Inc. in the CEO’s capacity as chair of the LLC Management Committee and works collaboratively with the executive leadership team to further CCOF’s mission of advancing organic agriculture for a healthy world.
Learn more about this position.
Written by Guest Blogger on Monday, January 7, 2019
If you are considering implementing new practices on your farm to promote healthy soils and build resilience, you might be eligible for up to $75,000 in cost-share grants. The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA)’s Climate Smart Agriculture Program is allocating $15 million for Healthy Soils grants for the coming year. Applications are due March 8, 2019.
Help with Paperwork
Free assistance with planning and completing the grant application is available. Wild Farm Alliance will assist growers who contact them at info@wildfarmalliance.org. Together with…
Written by Meaghan Donovan on Monday, January 7, 2019
Tickets for the CCOF Foundation food safety workshops in Pacific Grove, CA are going fast. While our workshop in English has sold out, there is still space left in our Spanish food safety workshop. Hosted on January 23 in conjunction with the 2019 EcoFarm Conference, the workshop meets the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) training requirement for produce growers. Thanks to a grant from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, tickets cost only $35. Don’t miss the January 15 deadline to purchase tickets!
You do not need to attend the entire EcoFarm conference to…
Written by Guest Blogger on Monday, January 7, 2019
HarvestPort is excited to announce HarvestPort INPUTS, a full-service crop input procurement service with many options for the organic grower community, and we want to earn your business. For a limited time, HarvestPort will reimburse the full cost of your 2018 annual CCOF renewal bill.
Check out HarvestPort INPUTS, a full-service crop input procurement program, and HarvestPort DEALS, an opt-in platform (similar to Groupon) with time-sensitive discounts on agricultural products, services, and technology.
Growers looking for a procurement partner to source the right inputs…
Written by Jane Sooby on Monday, January 7, 2019
The Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board is updating the agricultural order that regulates discharges from irrigated farmland. A comment period is now open with comments due by 8 a.m. on January 22, 2019.
Submit comments to AgNOI@waterboards.ca.gov and indicate in the subject line “Comments to Ag Order 4.0 Options Tables.” Read the notice of public comment period.
The regional water board will accept comments on any topic related to the new version of the ag order. The board specifically requests comments on an “options table” that lays out existing and…
Written by Josaphine Stevenson on Monday, January 7, 2019
Organic farming is a trade and lifestyle that naturally lends itself to storytelling. Makshya Tolbert first found that to be true as an undergrad, studying the intersection of nature poetry and black history and wanting to write poems that expressed the intimacy between the two. Tolbert began learning to grow food on campus farms and gardens and felt empowered to write about her experiences…
Written by Meaghan Donovan on Monday, December 17, 2018
Join the CCOF Foundation on January 23, 2019 in Pacific Grove, California for the final trainings in our FSMA food safety workshop series. The workshops will be offered in English and Spanish and meet the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) training requirement for produce growers.
Thanks to a grant from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, workshop tickets only cost $35 per attendee. Without grant support, these trainings can cost hundreds of dollars per person.
Our January trainings are hosted as pre-conference events at the 2019 EcoFarm conference. You…
Written by Jacob Guth on Monday, September 17, 2018
Organic producers are busy and have a lot going on, especially during harvest. Overlapping regulations and requirements for a modern farm and all the inspections that result have many producers experiencing “audit fatigue.” Since the inception of CCOF’s food safety program, organic growers have been asking for a combined food safety and organic inspection to reduce the amount of time these inspections take them away from what they love to do: work their farms.
CCOF, an organization that is governed by a board of organic producers, heard you loud and clear. We began cross-training…
Written by Shawna Rodgers on Monday, July 23, 2018
Photo: Haleigh Jones, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo student, Future Organic Farmer Grant Fund grant recipient
You may have heard of the CCOF Foundation or our Future Organic Farmer Grant Fund or Organic Training Institute. You can support these programs by donating to the CCOF Foundation!
Your support of the CCOF Foundation can help you make an impact in…
Written by Adrian Fischer on Tuesday, March 6, 2018
PHOTO: Darrell Wood
We’re still buzzing with inspiration following our CCOF Annual Meeting and Conference in Sacramento on February 23. This year, 175 attendees joined us to explore the factors that have made California a hotbed of organic hotspots activity and discuss…
Written by Peter Nell on Monday, December 18, 2017
The National Organic Coalition (NOC) issued an action alert calling on organic advocates to urge their elected officials to support the National Organic Certification Cost Share Program (Cost Share) and the Agricultural Management Assistance Act (AMA).
CCOF highly encourages the organic community to rally in support of Cost Share and to follow the steps outlined in NOC’s action alert.
Cost Share is one of the few federal assistance programs that offers specific support to organic producers. The program provides organic producers with a reimbursement of up to $750 of their…
Written by ManualMigrator2 on Monday, April 3, 2017
The California State Board of Food and Agriculture will discuss agricultural labor issues, rural job development, and opportunities for career technical education at its upcoming meeting on April 4, 2017, in Sacramento. Over the next 5-10 years, on-farm automation and research will impact the agricultural sector, creating a need for rural job development and technical training for farm workers in communities across the state. The meeting will be held from 10:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the California Department of Food and Agriculture, 1220 N Street – Main Auditorium, Sacramento, CA 95814.…
Written by Adrian Fischer on Monday, March 6, 2017
CCOF hosted over 200 participants at our Annual Meeting and Conference, in Visalia, California on February 9 and 10. Conference attendees, representing a broad spectrum of the organic community, gathered to hear about innovations and inspiration in the organic sector.
Keynote speaker Gary Hirshberg gave an insightful speech about the are new opportunities for organic posed by this moment in our country’s history. He called upon those in the room to join with the larger organic community to champion organic with a unified voice. “Organic is about building the next generation of hope…
Written by Kelly Damewood on Tuesday, February 21, 2017
The proposed organic check-off program is open for comment through March 20, 2017. CCOF members are strongly encouraged to comment. Comments should include any recommended improvements to the proposal as it is now published and whether the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) should move forward with putting the proposal to a nationwide referendum.
About the Organic Check-off
The proposed Organic Check-off program is projected to raise at least $30 million per year to fund organic research, technical assistance, and promotion of the organic brand. The funding…
Written by Guest Blogger on Tuesday, February 21, 2017
The California Department of Food and Agriculture’s (CDFA) State Organic Program (SOP) is pleased to announce a federal funding opportunity of $12.5 million for eligible applicants under the Organic Certification Cost Share Program (OCCSP). The SOP has applied to the Farm Service Agency (FSA) under the United States Department of Agriculture to assist in distribution of these funds…