This spring, legislation was introduced that would clear the way for some changes in the U.S. National Organic Program (NOP). The Continuous Improvement and Accountability in Organic Standards Act (CIAO) was introduced in the House earlier this year and is up to 16 co-sponsors. The bill, if passed, would require the USDA to issue action plans, with detailed timelines for dealing with each future recommendation within two years, as well as create a plan for dealing with the current backlog of recommendations from the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB)—a group of industry stakeholders tasked with providing recommendations to the NOP. 
 

The members of the NOSB have unanimously endorsed the bill, along with several other associations and groups. The Organic Trade Association (OTA) reports that 50 of their members recently met with some 30 lawmakers to lobby for the bill. 
 

 

One such member, Mark Squire, president, Good Earth Natural Foods organic grocer in California, said, “Our grocery customers are expecting USDA to close the gap between consumer expectations of organic and the implementation of the National Organic Program. This bill goes a long way to accomplish that.” 

 

As part of continued advocacy for the CIAO bill, the Organic Trade Association and the Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems at Arizona State University say they will be launching a series of virtual workshops this fall and winter to look at the changing needs of organic, explore ways to improve organic, and discuss how to build upon organic’s successes.

Some big news, relayed by my colleague JC Chong in his latest PestTalks newsletter:
 

Bayer announced the last week of July that the company would stop using glyphosate in its products for residential lawns and gardens as early as 2023. Glyphosate, more commonly known as Roundup, will be replaced by multiple established, but yet-to-be announced, non-glyphosate active ingredients. The replacement product or products will still be sold under the Roundup brand.

 

 

Werner Baumann, CEO of Bayer AG, was clear in stating that the decision to remove glyphosate from the residential lawn and garden market is due to the need to manage and mitigate future litigation risks. There are already tens of thousands of Roundup litigation claims, which have already cost Bayer a pretty penny.
 

The decision to remove glyphosate is voluntary and only applicable to the residential market. Bayer will continue to provide glyphosate to professional and agricultural users.
 

This decision is applicable to Bayer only; it isn’t clear if other manufacturers and providers of generic glyphosate products will follow suit.

When we started GreenTalks in 2007, the horticulture industry was just coming to terms with the notion of sustainability. (Now, don’t get me wrong, a whole lot of you were practicing it long before that, but as an industry, it wasn’t part of the standard business lingo.) The last 14 years have proved that it’s a crucial component for smart, resilient businesses—now and in the future. Of course, the catch is that there’s no one-size-fits-all solution that magically makes your business more “sustainable.” 
 

That’s why I’m so pleased to see that the The International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH) has partnered with GreenTech worldwide events, the Floriculture Sustainability Initiative (FSI) and FloraCulture International (FCI) to create a virtual online international conference called ‘The path to sustainability in ornamental horticulture,” slated for September 30, 2021. 
 

For North Americans, it’s going to be an early alarm, but I think it’ll be worth it. The one-day conference includes speakers from around the world who will speak to what the industry is doing to become more sustainable, how progress can be measured and what the future holds.

The keynote presentation will be from Dr. David Bek of Coventry University, UK. The other conference speakers will address such topics as the role of certification, plastics, growing media, people and marketing. Other speakers and panelists confirmed so far include:
 

• Jeroen Oudheusden—Floriculture Sustainability Initiative (FSI)

• Susannah Ball—Ball Horticulture, USA

• Steve Harper—Growing Media Responsible Sourcing Scheme, UK

• Melanie Dürr—Fairtrade International

• Maarten Banki—Royal FloraHolland

• Daan de Vries—MPS

• Kiki Fernandes—Marginpar, Kenya

• Dr. Audrey Timm—AIPH

• Elise Wieringa—Royal Lemkes, the Netherlands

• Ximena Franco—Florverde Sustainable Flowers, Colombia

• Sven Hoping—Pöppelmann, Germany

• Cecilia Luetgebrune—Growing Media Europe

• Nada van Schouwenburg—Women Win, the Netherlands

• Prof. Charlie Hall—Texas A&M University, USA

• Leo Swart—Cresultant, the Netherlands
 

Commenting on the launch of the conference, AIPH Secretary General, Tim Briercliffe, said “The global ornamental horticulture industry makes such a positive contribution to the planet in so many ways, but to create a truly sustainable supply chain we need to share initiatives and work together. This conference provides the perfect platform for taking this forward.” 
 

The conference takes place 10:00 a.m.-4:45 p.m. BST (5:00-11:45 a.m. EDT). Registration is just GBP £20.00 (about USD $28). For more details and to register click HERE.  

When the EU set a target of having 25% of their agricultural land organic by 2030, there was debate among the agricultural ministers over the feasibility of meeting such a goal. But last month, the EU agriculture ministers met and gave their approval for the Farm to Fork food policy. 
 

Each EU country will, voluntarily, work on plans to help achieve this 25% target. The ministers are concerned about matching the supply to the demand as the organic supply grows, and they’ll be looking at procurement programs for schools and public cafeterias to help create demand. 

 

How do you get more people eating healthy and eating locally grown? Here’s one solution: putting farms in residential communities. The Pennsylvania-based Rodale Institute, a leader in regenerative organic agriculture, joined forces with the Cornwall Manor Retirement Community to create an organic farm at Cornwall Manor.

 

The organic farm will supply all the campus dining areas, and eventually, as it expands, residents will also be able to purchase the farm produce for their personal use. Rodale is providing the organic expertise.
 

This year, they hired a farm manager and planted 1 acre of crops on the 2-acre farm, and there are plans to have a high tunnel in place and expand the acreage next year. Both Rodale and Cornwall Manor say this could serve as a model for retirement communities across the country. 

 

If, while dining on wild game and garden-harvested vegetables, you find yourself feeling smug, it must be August or September in my house. It’s about that time of year when the garden nearly overwhelms with its bounty (and we’re also emptying out the freezer from the previous year's wild game harvest). Meanwhile, the mornings are increasingly chill and crisp, reminding us that fall is ready to creep in. I also simultaneously get the itch to expand the perennial beds that are blooming so beautifully right now.

I call it the smug season, because, well, I start feeling rather self-congratulatory about our ability to provide for ourselves. Now, I just need to dust off the home brewing equipment, figure out how to make wine, and get some chickens to really walk the talk. Such are the rambling thoughts from the Montana Outpost.