National Organic Standards Proposed Rule

Opinions Differ on GMOs in Rule

The certification committee reports it is divided on the subject of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in organic production. The issue is not whether genetically modified crops can be grown as organic - that's a unanimous No! - but whether pest and disease control methods can include GMO products. The issue raised its head in NOFA/Mass's response to the Proposed Organic Rule.

"As you may know," Jacqueline Jones, certification committee member, wrote to Jonathan von Ranson, who was charged with drafting the position, "the Campaign for Sustainable Agriculture wants all GMOs prohibited from organic agriculture. Therefore, they feel that the wording in the rule should be 'prohibited' rather than 'excluded methods' because [the latter] would leave the door open to future allowance. Another way GMOs could be defined is using the word 'synthetic'. This way each GMO is handled on a case- by-case method. This is not to say anyone wants to grow New Leaf potatoes, but Bt has been a very helpful method of organic pest ontrol and would not be allowed at all if the word 'prohibited' is used.

"There are also some health care products for livestock being currently used in organic agriculture that are a result of this technology. The idea here is that the GMO issue is not black and white, so some people are suggesting that we don't treat it that way. Defining GMOs as synthetic is accurate because they are man-made and do not appear in nature. The method with which synthetic inputs are examined is rigorous and controlled.

"The certification committee was not unified on this subject," she wrote, "and therefore felt that both sides should be represented. Otherwise we back the response that the National Campaign for Sustainable Agriculture has compiled."

In the discussion by the board, there was also a proposal made by Paul Maiewski of the certification committee that GMOs be treated as "synthetic." The board voted to prohibit them entirely - in spite of their usefulness - for consistency and to offer the public a clear choice on a technology there is great uneasiness about. "Farmers got along without GE products for a long time," said Jack Kittredge, NOFA/Mass coordinator and editor of The Natural Farmer, "and this may spur innovation like we've seen before."

This page was last modified on January 27, 2008 at 12:26:58 PM.