By Tim King In 1972 Ken and Roberta Horn, who were farming 140 acres near Plymouth, Maine, became the first of thousands of farms to be certified organic by MOFGA over the next half century. There were 26 more certifications granted by MOFGA that year. The number nearly doubled, to 47, the following year. That
Toki Oshima illustration By Chris Grigsby The year 2019 was certainly a whirlwind in the world of hemp production in the United States. MOFGA Certification Services (MCS) has been working hard to relay information to growers, submit comments and testimony on proposed rules, and prepare our organic certification program to accept applications from hemp growers.
By Chris Grigsby The goal of MOFGA’s Certified Clean Cannabis program (MC3) is to offer an independent, third-party-verified marketing claim similar to the USDA National Organic Program (NOP) but for cannabis products, which cannot be certified organic at this time. The standards were developed by MOFGA with a group of dedicated Maine caregivers. The program is entering
By Chris Grigsby, MOFGA Certification Services LLC Director The MOFGA board voted in April 2017 to continue the MOFGA Certified Clean Cannabis Program beyond its trial phase and to open the program to a larger number of caregivers for the coming growing season and beyond. The trial was first featured in the fall 2016 issue
All the different organic logos in Europe, displayed at Biofach in Nuremberg. Photo by the author. By Jacomijn Schravesande-Gardei, Associate Director of Crops, MOFGA Certification Services, LLC A few years ago I had the pleasure of attending an IFOAM organic leadership course in Europe. IFOAM, the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements, is the worldwide
A sampling of the staff of MOFGA Certification Services LLC: Left to right – Chris Grigsby, Katy Green, Laurah Brown, Grace Keown, Jacomijn Schravesande-Gardei, Katie Webb (with daughter Edith). By Chris Grigsby, MOFGA Certification Services LLC Director As MOFGA moves toward its 50th birthday, the world of organic agriculture differs vastly from that world in
By Chris Grigsby MOFGA Certification Services LLC Director At the annual Accredited Certifiers Association and USDA National Organic Program’s (NOP) certifier training, held in San Antonio in February 2018, the focus was on reporting about recent breakdowns in the integrity of product certified as organic and steps taken to mitigate these risks moving forward. In addition, many
Many organic growers and consumers believe that organic cultivation must take place in soil. Here the author, Eric Sideman, appreciates the soil on an organic farm. Becky Sideman photo The USDA National Organic Program has asked the National Organic Standards Board for advice about whether or not hydroponically grown crops raised with natural materials may
By Jacomijn Schravesande-Gardei, MOFGA Certification Services LLC In order to sell, label or represent products as organic in the United States, farming and processing operations must be certified. MOFGA Certification Services (MCS) is accredited by the USDA to certify and inspect organic operations. The MOFGA Certification label assures consumers that products have been produced with
A nutrient film technique hydroponic system. The nutrient solution bathing the roots has grown some good looking kale, but do you think it should be called organic? Eric Sideman photo By Eric Sideman, Ph.D. Can you imagine losing your identity through no fault of your own? We all have an image of ourselves and identify
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