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What are the various ways that glycerin is produced, and which forms are allowed in organic livestock production?
By Tina Jensen Augustine
Glycerin, or glycerol, is a colorless or pale yellow, viscous liquid that can be derived either from animal and vegetable fats and oils, or from petrochemical feedstocks. Glycerin occurs naturally as the backbone molecule to which fatty acids are bonded in triglycerides, or fats. Synthetic forms of glycerin are permitted for use as livestock teat dips at §205.603(a)(14). The listing...
I know that glycerin is listed as an allowed nonorganically produced agricultural ingredient for food processing, but I have also seen it in products used as crop inputs for organic agriculture—does glycerin have a nonsynthetic form?
By Sam Schaefer-Joel
Glycerin, also known as glycerol, is a small molecule with a large variety of uses. Its viscosity, polarity, solubility, and hygroscopic (water absorbing) properties give it a wide range of applications in agriculture, food processing, medicine, microbiology and...
Is non-certified organic molasses permitted in crop fertilizers? What about molasses derivatives, such as vinasse?
By Tessa Barker
Let’s say you are a fertilizer manufacturer, looking for ingredients for a blended fertilizer marketed to Canadian organic crop producers. Thinking it will probably be allowed; you select a molasses product that is already listed by OMRI under the USDA National Organic Program (NOP) standards to use as an ingredient. Surprisingly, your proposed product gets prohibited by the OMRI Canada...
If a coloring is included in a teat dip, does OMRI require that the coloring meets the excipient criteria?
By Sarah Peters
Excipients are defined at 7 CFR §205.2 as:
Any ingredients that are intentionally added to livestock medications but do not exert therapeutic or diagnostic effects at the intended dosage, although they may act to improve product delivery (e.g., enhancing absorption or controlling release of the drug substance). Examples of such ingredients include fillers, extenders...
What are NPEs, and are they still allowed in organic crop production?
By Meagan Campbell
Nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPEs) are a commonly used group of synthetic surfactants. Surfactants are compounds that help decrease surface tension, and can help different substances mix together if they naturally repel each other. NPEs are used in a wide variety of products, including cleaning and degreasing products, paints, lubricants, epoxy, and pesticides.
Surfactants formulated with NPEs are added at the time of mixing...
Can I use an OMRI NOP listing to verify GE status under COR?
By Tessa Barker
Review Program staff are often asked if products that are OMRI Listed® under the USDA National Organic Program (NOP) standards would be allowed for use in products applying for OMRI listing under the Canada Organic Regime (COR). Because these ruling bodies are independent, they have different requirements. A listing under the standards of one ruling body does not automatically translate to a listing under another. One specific way in which COR...
What are the allowances for hydrated lime in organic livestock production?
By Nick Stansbury
Hydrated lime is a synthetic material that consists primarily of calcium hydroxide. It can also contain magnesium hydroxide, along with other trace minerals. To produce it, manufacturers heat limestone to form solid quicklime (calcium oxide, CaO) and gaseous carbon dioxide. They then hydrate the quicklime with a slow addition of water.
Lime, hydrated appears at §205.603(b)(6) on the list of “synthetic...
What are the recent regulatory updates that impact synthetic acid stabilization for fish products?
By Jennifer Christie
Growers have used fish products throughout history to provide essential plant nutrients to their crops, and organic producers rely on liquid fish products for this same purpose. However, these products’ proteins degrade rapidly under normal environmental conditions, so modern manufacturers employ acid-stabilization to delay putrefaction and extend the products’ viability.
When it comes to...
My feed label says it contains "zeolite." What is this, and is it allowed in feed for organic livestock?
By Deder Siedler
Zeolite is a generic term for a class of porous minerals which exhibit unique qualities as adsorbents, carriers and catalysts. Zeolite is composed of porous crystals of silicon and aluminum, and the material can be loaded with other ions such as sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium. The most common forms that farmers might encounter are sodium silico-aluminate (SSA), calcium aluminosilicate (CAS...
What standards must compost products meet to be used in organic agriculture?
By Taryn Kennedy
The USDA National Organic Program (NOP) regulations cover on-farm practices such as cultivation, crop rotation, and fertility management. These standards specify what substances can be applied to crops and soil. The NOP publishes guidances that further clarify the standards in relation to a...
