The Strengthening Organic (SOE) Rule is regulation put forth by the USDA NOP. The published rule is the most significant change to the national organic regulations since the creation of the NOP.
Timeline
The Strengthening Organic (SOE) Rule was published on January 19, 2023. After a 60-day holding period, the rule will be effective on March 20, 2023, and operations – including both currently certified and newly impacted uncertified handlers of organic products – must meet all of the requirements in the rule by March 19, 2024. The rule is intended to safeguard confidence in organic products and minimize fraud throughout the organic supply chain.
Uncertified operations that were previously not required to be certified but will be required to be certified as of March 19, 2024 can contact getcertified@ccof.org today to see if they qualify for our 2023 discount! Getting certified early will ensure a seamless transition and our offer is most advantageous to those submitting early in 2023. The certification process may take up to 12 weeks and thousands of operations will need certification. Don’t wait, apply today!
Currently certified operations can expect notification of what is required via our newsletter and on their CCOF compliance report.
Who will be impacted and how?
Many operations working in the organic industry will be impacted. All operations involved in organic are encouraged to review the regulations.
Uncertified Storage Locations, Brokers, Traders, Importers
SOE requires many operations that were previously exempt from certification to get certified. We encourage you to review the regulations in full here. The following operations now need to seek certification:
- Operations that buy, sell, trade, or facilitate the sale or trade of organic goods in nonretail packaging or containers. This includes brokers, traders, distributors, wholesalers, and private label brand owners who sell organic products that are not labeled for retail sale—all are required to be certified.
- Note that brand owners that buy ingredients in nonretail packaging to send to co-packers are required to get certified for the purchase of ingredients.
- Keep reading to learn more about operations who buy and sell organic products in retail packaging.
- Operations that buy, sell, trade, or facilitate the sale or trade of retail-labeled product that is not in sealed, tamper-evident packaging or containers must be certified.
- Tamper-evident means that the contents are sealed in a manner where an attempt to break the seal, access the contents, or reclose the package would be obvious.
Examples of sealed, tamper-evident retail packaging:- Berry clamshells with a sticker enclosing the clamshell
- Zip-top grape bags with a sealed top (sticker or strip that consumers must rip off to open bag)
- Cauliflower individually wrapped in plastic
- Mesh bags of potatoes with a label that seals the bag (have to rip open bag to access produce)
- The retail packaging must be sealed and tamper-evident packaging. If only the nonretail packaging is sealed and tamper-evident, certification is required.
- For example: Brokers and private label brand owners selling unpackaged produce in non-retail boxes are required to be certified because the retail labeled product is unpackaged.
- Tamper-evident means that the contents are sealed in a manner where an attempt to break the seal, access the contents, or reclose the package would be obvious.
- Importers of products into the United States as well as exporters of products into the United States must get certified.
- Storage facilities that store product that is not in sealed, tamper-evident packaging must get certified.
- Either the non-retail or retail packaged must be sealed and tamper-evident.
- Transport companies that combine, split, or unload unpackaged organic product must be certified. Transporters and transloaders who do not otherwise handle organic products are not required to be certified.
- However, if a transporter or transloader is loading or unloading unpackaged products, the locations where product is loaded or unloaded must be certified; transporters cannot load/unload unpackaged product at uncertified locations.
- Some retail operations are required to be certified. Retail establishments are defined as restaurants, delicatessens, bakeries, grocery stores or any retail business with a restaurant, delicatessen, bakery, salad bar, bulk food self-service station, or other eat-in, carry-out, mail to order, or delivery service of raw or processed agricultural products. Businesses that sell to other businesses are wholesale and do not qualify as retail establishments.
- Retail operations that process organic product at a separate location from the point of sale, such as a commissary kitchen, must get the off-site location certified under the USDA NOP handler scope. If products are processed and sold at the same physical location (including repacking or preparing ready-to-eat meals), only certified organic retail establishments may use the USDA organic seal on products they process.
- Retail establishments may use virtual transactions for sales, but they must also have a physical location for consumers to purchase products to be considered a retail establishment. Retail operations that process organic product and have only virtual sales (no physical location) must get certified under the USDA NOP handler scope. Retail operations that do not process but have only virtual sales may be required to be certified, unless exempt under other sections of NOP 205.101.
The following operations are exempt under the SOE regulations. Additional caveats may apply, and we encourage you to review the regulations in full before concluding you are exempt. If not listed below, your operation will likely need to gain certification. Uncertified operations will need to complete and be approved under CCOF’s Exempt Handler Affidavit for CCOF certified operations to continue working with them after the March 19th, 2024, deadline. Please contact CCOF’s Applicant Support team (getcertified@ccof.org) with any questions.
- Operations such as distributors or brand name owners that are buying, selling, or storing organic products that are in retail, tamper-evident packaging and remain in the same packaging and are not otherwise handled while in the operation’s control are not required to be certified.
- Note that brand owners that buy ingredients in nonretail packaging to send to co-packers will be required to get certified for the purchase of ingredients.
- Storage facilities that receive product that remains in sealed, tamper-evident packaging throughout the time the product is in their custody are not required to be certified. These storage facilities do not take ownership of the product.
- Customs brokers who do not import, trade, sell, or take ownership or physical possession of organic products are not required to be certified.
- Logistics brokers who do not take ownership or physical possession of organic products are not required to be certified. Exempt logistic brokers may only arrange for the movement of organic product and may not buy, sell, trade, or import.
- Transport companies that do not otherwise handle products are not required to be certified.
- Operations with gross agricultural income from organic sales that totals $5,000 or less annually are not required to be certified.
- Operations that only process agricultural products containing less than 70% certified organic ingredients or products that only make organic claims in their ingredient panels are not required to be certified.
- Retail establishments that do not process organic product and/or retail locations that process organic product at the location of final sale are not required to be certified.
- Businesses which sell to other businesses are not considered retail establishments.
- A retail establishment may have virtual sales, but they must also have a physical location for consumers to purchase goods.
All Certified Organic Operations
- Standardized Organic Certificates will be required and will be available in the Organic Integrity Database. Certifiers will be required to update the Organic Integrity Database more regularly, making this database a critical tool for verifying that a supplier is certified. Certified operations do not need to take an action to fulfill this requirement.
- Nonretail containers used to ship or store organic products will be required to identify the product as organic and display the lot number or shipping identification to link the container to the audit trail documentation. Audit trail documentation for nonretail containers must identify the last certified operation that handled the organic product.
Certified Handler Operations
- Operations will be required to develop monitoring practices to verify suppliers in the supply chain and organic status of products received and prevent fraud. CCOF clients can expect requests for description of monitoring practices to appear on their compliance reports.
- NOP Import Certificates will be required for all organic products entering the United States, even for product certified to USDA NOP standards. NOP Import certificates must be maintained by importers, who will be required to be certified.
Certified Grower Operations
- Grower Group Operations – CCOF does not certify grower groups, however regulations regarding grower groups are outlined under SOE.
There are other proposed changes that will have impacts on certifiers and certified operations. Please review USDA NOP resources for full details.
Resources
Organic Trade Association Summary of SOE Regulation
USDA NOP Flyer: Safeguarding Organic Supply Chains
USDA NOP Side by Side Comparison of Past and Present Regulations
Federal Register: Strengthening Organic Enforcement