The USDA National Organic Program (NOP) today recognized the work of accredited organic certifiers with awards for extraordinary support of the National Organic Standards. The awards were presented at the annual NOP Certifier Training for organic inspectors from around the world, held virtually. Ten certifiers were recognized for exceeding requirements for delivering high quality data to the Organic INTEGRITY Database in 2021. Two Certifiers were also recognized with a Director’s Award for outstanding contributions to work in organic certification.
u201cThese awards recognize the success of our public-private partnership and demonstrate the close collaboration between certifiers and the program to protect consumer confidence and maintain a level playing field for organic farmers, ranchers and businesses,u201d said NOP Deputy Administrator Jennifer Tucker. u201cThe work of these certifiers really stood out, even at a time when the overall quality and timeliness of the data being provided voluntarily continues to improve each year.u201d
Up-to-date public information about organic operations helps buyers and sellers find each other in the marketplace, making data an important market development tool. The USDA Organic Integrity Database makes it easy for anyone to look up the status of a certified organic operation and see the products that each farm and business has to offer.
The fifth annual Investing in INTEGRITY Data Quality Award winners are (listed alphabetically):
u2022 CCOF Certification Services, LLC (CCOF) – Santa Cruz, CA
u2022 Certificadora Mexicana de Productos y Procesos Ecologicos SC (CMEX) – Oaxaca, Mexico
u2022 Clemson University (CU) – Pendleton, SC
u2022 Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) – Des Moines, IA
u2022 LACON GmbH (LACON) – Offenburg, Germany
u2022 Marin Organic Certified Agriculture (MOCA) – Novato, CA
u2022 MOFGA Certification Services, LLC (MCS) – Unity, ME
u2022 New Hampshire Department of Agriculture, Markets & Food (NHDAMF) – Concord, NH
u2022 Primus Auditing Operations (PAO) – Santa Maria, CA
u2022 Quality Certification Services (QCS) – Gainesville, FL