PERMANENT RULES
Date of Adoption: April 26, 2002.
Purpose: Chapter 16-157 WAC sets standards for the certification of organic producers, processors, and handlers. The rule provides the application, inspection, sampling, fee schedule and certification criteria for obtaining organic and transitional certification. The rule adopts the 2001 National Organic Program subparts A, C, D, E, sections 205.102 through 205.105, and sections 205.600 through 205.606.
Citation of Existing Rules Affected by this Order: Repealing chapters 16-154, 16-156, 16-158, 16-162, and 16-164 WAC.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: Chapter 15.86 RCW.
Adopted under notice filed as WSR 02-07-117 on March 20, 2002.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 17, Amended 0, Repealed 65; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's Own Initiative: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted Using Negotiated Rule Making:
New 0,
Amended 0,
Repealed 0;
Pilot Rule Making:
New 0,
Amended 0,
Repealed 0;
or Other Alternative Rule Making:
New 0,
Amended 0,
Repealed 0.
Effective Date of Rule:
Thirty-one days after filing.
April 29, 2002
William E. Brookreson
Director
OTS-5387.2
ORGANIC FOOD STANDARDS AND CERTIFICATION
GENERAL PROVISIONS
NEW SECTION
WAC 16-157-010
Purpose.
This chapter is promulgated
pursuant to RCW 15.86.060 wherein the director is authorized to
adopt rules for the proper administration of the Organic Food
Products Act and pursuant to RCW 15.86.070 wherein the director
is authorized to adopt rules establishing a certification program
for producers, processors and handlers of organic and
transitional food.
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(1) "Department" means the department of agriculture of the state of Washington.
(2) "Director" means the director of the department of agriculture or his or her duly authorized representative.
(3) "Distribute" means to offer for sale, hold for sale, sell, barter, deliver, or supply materials in this state.
(4) "Facility" includes, but is not limited to, any premises, plant, establishment, facilities and the appurtenances thereto, in whole or in part, where organic food is prepared, handled, or processed in any manner for resale or distribution to retail outlets, restaurants, and any such other facility selling or distributing to the ultimate consumer.
(5) "Growing medium" means the material utilized by fungi as a substrate for growth.
(6) "Growing medium amendment" means a nutritional supplement added to the growing medium to enhance vigor and yields.
(7) "Handle" means to sell, arrange the sale of, represent, process, distribute or package organic food products.
(8) "Handler" means any person who sells, arranges the sale of, represents, processes, distributes, or packs organic food products.
(9) "Label" means all written, printed, or graphic material on the immediate container or accompanying or representing the product.
(10) "Labeling" means all labels and other written, printed, or graphic matter (a) upon any article or any of its containers or wrappers, or (b) accompanying or representing such article.
(11) "New applicant" means any person that applies for organic certification for the first time, or when previous certification status has expired for at least one year.
(12) "Organic food product" means any agricultural product, including fruit, vegetable, meat, dairy, beverage and grocery, that is marketed using the term organic or any derivative of the term organic in its labeling or advertising, including using the term organic on the principal display panel, ingredients list or other locations on the label.
(13) "Person" means any natural person, firm, partnership, exchange, association, trustee, receiver, corporation, and any other member, officer, or employee thereof or assignee for the benefit of creditors.
(14) "Principal display panel" means that portion of the package label that is most likely seen by the consumer at the time of purchase.
(15) "Processor" means any handler engaged in the canning, freezing, drying, dehydrating, cooking, pressing, powdering, packaging, baking, heating, mixing, grinding, churning, separating, extracting, cutting, fermenting, eviscerating, preserving, jarring, slaughtering or otherwise processing organic food.
(16) "Producer" means any person or organization who or which grows, raises or produces an agricultural product.
(17) "Prohibited" means any material or practice which does not meet the required criteria or standards for use in the production or handling of organic or transitional agricultural products.
(18) "Renewal applicant" means any person that has received organic certification from the department in the previous year.
(19) "Retail facility" means any facility, in whole or in part, that sells organic food products directly to consumers.
(20) "Retailer" means any handler that sells organic food products directly to consumers.
(21) "Sale" means selling, offering for sale, holding for sale, preparing for sale, trading, bartering, offering a gift as an inducement for sale of, and advertising for sale in any media.
(22) "Site" means a defined field, orchard, block, pasture, paddock, garden, circle, plot or other designated area.
(23) "Spawn" means a medium that has been colonized with the desired fungal mycelia. It is used to inoculate growing medium.
(24) "Transitional food product" means any agricultural product that (a) is marketed using the term transitional in its labeling and advertising and (b) satisfies all of the requirements of organic food except that it has had no applications of prohibited substances within one year prior to the harvest of the crop.
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PART IIORGANIC PRODUCTION AND HANDLING STANDARDS
NEW SECTION
WAC 16-157-100
Land requirements.
In order to meet the
requirements of the National Organic Program section 205.202
producers of organic crops must comply with the following
requirements.
(1) Buffer zones: Crops harvested and marketed as "organic," "organically grown," or "transitional" shall be grown, raised, or produced within the meaning of RCW 15.86.030 at least twenty-five feet from the nearest application of prohibited materials. Crops grown in the buffer zone may not be marketed as "organic" or "transitional."
(2) Boundaries of site: The boundaries of each site in organic or transitional production must be clearly and unambiguously identified along all borders. Identification may consist of flagging, fences, posts, signs, roads or other markers.
(3) Roadside and right of way vegetation management: Nonchemical vegetation management agreements must be established with road departments, railroads, irrigation districts, and other rights of way that are in proximity to organic and transitional food production, or, where no agreement is possible, adequate buffer zones must be established.
(4) Notification: Producers of organic and transitional crops must notify owners and/or managers of adjoining land that they are producing organic and/or transitional crops. The notification must state the location of the sites in organic and transitional food production. Notification must be made on an annual basis.
(5) Transitional requirements: Organic crops must have had no applications of prohibited materials to the crops or land for three years prior to the harvest of the organic crop. Transitional crops must have had no applications of prohibited materials to the crops or land for one year prior to the harvest of the transitional crop.
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(1) Organic crop production records. All producers of organic and transitional crops shall keep accurate records of:
(a) The location of the acreage used for growing such products;
(b) The materials applied, excluding water, made to the soil or applied to the plant or added to irrigation water. The records of materials applied shall include the date the material was applied, the quantity of the material applied, the application rate and the name of the material applied. Brand name materials must be identified by the complete brand name. Unbranded materials must be identified by type of material (e.g., chicken manure) and source (e.g., XYZ poultry farm);
(c) Sales of all certified organic and transitional crops produced and sold;
(d) Yield records for all organic and transitional crops sold in the wholesale market or to processors.
(2) Organic livestock production records. All organic livestock must be ear tagged or individually marked with the exception of poultry, which may be identified by flock. All producers of organic livestock shall keep accurate records of:
(a) All disease and pest management materials administered including dates administered, material type, dosages, and sources;
(b) All feed purchased including dates received, quantities received, and a copy of organic certificates;
(c) The weight of slaughter animals at slaughter and weight of post-slaughter animal products; and
(d) Sales records of all organic animal products sold.
(3) Organic handler records.
(a) Handlers must maintain records that track organic food products from receiving through distribution, shipping or sale. Such records may include the following: Invoices, bills of lading, date and quantity of product handled, repack data, and production run reports.
(b) All handlers must have available copies of organic food certificates for all organic food products. Organic food certificates must be current and correspond to the organic food products handled by the facility. All organic food certificates must be issued by a certification agency recognized by the director.
(c) All records associated with organic food products must clearly indicate that the product is an organic food product.
(d) Identification: All organic food products must be clearly identified at all times with appropriate labeling on all boxes, bins, bags, or other containers that contain organic food products.
(4) Inadequate recordkeeping may constitute cause for the director to prohibit labeling products as organic.
(5) Such records shall be retained for five years.
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(2) Organic and nonorganic production must be in separate facilities and have separate ventilation systems.
(3) The producer must use organically produced spawn.
(4) The producer may use nonorganic agar medium that may contain antibiotics not to exceed 1/25th of a gram per liter of agar mix.
(5) Agricultural materials including grain and straw that are used in production substrate must be organically produced. Sawdust, logs or other materials derived from wood used as a growth substrate must originate from trees that have been grown in areas free of prohibited materials for at least three years, and must not have been treated with a prohibited substance after tree harvest. Producers may include nonsynthetic, nonagricultural materials in substrate used to produce mushrooms.
(6) All growing medium amendments must be certified organic.
(7) Manure and any nonorganic agricultural material used as a growth substrate must be from an organic source. Compost used as a growth substrate must consist of certified organic feedstocks.
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PART IIIORGANIC CERTIFICATION
NEW SECTION
WAC 16-157-200
Application for certification.
(1) All
producers, processors and handlers of organic food products must
be certified by a National Organic Program accredited
certification agency except for:
(a) Producers who sell no more than five thousand dollars annually in value of agricultural products directly to consumers; and
(b) Retailers that do not process organic food products.
(2) Retailers and exempt producers of organic food products may be certified under this chapter.
(3) Applications for organic certification must be accompanied by the appropriate fee and must be submitted annually to the department on forms furnished by the department.
(4) The application must include an organic production or handling system plan.
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(1) The cost per application shall be based on the following fee schedule.
(a) Renewal applicants -
Application fees are based on the previous calendar year's sales of organic food. In the event that the current calendar year's sales exceed the previous year's sales, the department may bill the producer for the additional fee. In the event that the current calendar year's sales are less than the previous year's sales, the producer may request a refund for the reduced fee. In addition, renewal applications postmarked after March 1, shall pay a late fee of fifty dollars. Renewal applicants that are adding additional sites to their organic certification must pay a new site fee of fifty dollars for each additional site.
(b) New applicants -
Application fees shall be based on an estimate of the current year's sales of organic food. In the event that the current calendar year's sales exceed the estimate, the department may bill the producer for the additional fee. In the event that the current calendar year's sales are less than the estimate, the producer may request a refund for the reduced fee. In addition, new applicants pay a seventy-five dollar new applicant fee. New applicants that are seeking organic certification for more than one site must pay a site fee of fifty dollars for each additional site. The fee shall accompany the application.
| SALES | ANNUAL FEE | ||
| $ 0 | - | $ 12,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 165 |
| $ 12,001 | - | $ 15,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 200 |
| $ 15,001 | - | $ 20,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 220 |
| $ 20,001 | - | $ 25,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 275 |
| $ 25,001 | - | $ 30,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 330 |
| $ 30,001 | - | $ 35,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 385 |
| $ 35,001 | - | $ 42,500 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 465 |
| $ 42,501 | - | $ 50,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 550 |
| $ 50,001 | - | $ 65,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 660 |
| $ 65,001 | - | $ 80,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 825 |
| $ 80,001 | - | $100,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 990 |
| $100,001 | - | $125,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,100 |
| $125,001 | - | $150,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,150 |
| $150,001 | - | $175,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,320 |
| $175,001 | - | $200,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,375 |
| $200,001 | - | $240,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,540 |
| $240,001 | - | $280,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,595 |
| $280,001 | - | $325,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,650 |
| $325,001 | - | $375,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,720 |
| $375,001 | - | $425,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $2,200 |
| $425,001 | - | $500,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $2,300 |
| $500,001 | - | $750,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $2,750 |
| $750,001 | and up | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $2,000 plus 0.10% of gross organic sales | |
(2) Transitional acreage fee - In addition to the producer application fee, each applicant shall pay a fee of five dollars per acre for the land for which they are requesting transitional certification.
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(1) Application fee.
(a) Renewal applicants - Application fees are one hundred fifty dollars per facility. In addition, renewal applications postmarked after March 1, pay a late fee of fifty dollars.
(b) New applicants - Application fees are one hundred fifty dollars per facility. In addition, new applicants pay a seventy-five dollar new applicant fee.
(2) Certification fee - A certification fee based on the following fee schedule must accompany the application. Certification fees are assessments on the organic products in each category. New applicants must base certification fees on an estimate of sales in each category. Renewal applicants base certification fees on the previous calendar year's sales in each category. Applicants may have food products in more than one category.
Category I - Organic food products: Products labeled as "organic" or "one hundred percent organic" are assessed at 0.275% of the previous calendar year's sales for the first million dollars and 0.10% for sales above one million dollars.
Category II - Made with organic food products: Products labeled as "made with organic ingredients" are assessed 0.175% of the previous calendar year's sales for the first million dollars and 0.06% for sales above one million dollars.
Category III - Food products with organic ingredients: Products packaged for retail sales that limit their organic claims to the information panel are assessed 0.10% of the previous calendar year's sales for the first million dollars and 0.30% for sales above one million dollars.
Category IV - Custom organic food products: Products produced by processors who charge a service fee to organic manufacturers for processing organic food are assessed at 0.35% of the previous calendar year's service fees received for processing organic food for the first million dollars and 0.10% for service fees above one million dollars.
In the event that the current calendar year's sales (or service fees) exceed the previous year's sales (or service fees) or estimate of sales, the department may bill the applicant for the additional certification fee. In the event that the current calendar year's sales (or service fees) are less than the previous year's gross sales (or service fees) or estimate of sales, the applicant may request a refund for the reduced certification fee.
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(1) Renewal applicants. Application fees must be based on the previous calendar year's sales of organic food. In the event that the current calendar year's sales exceed the previous year's sales, the department may bill the handler for the additional fee. In the event that the current calendar year's sales are less than the previous year's sales, the producer may request a refund for the reduced fee. In addition, renewal applications postmarked after March 1 must pay a late fee of fifty dollars.
(2) New applicants. Application fees must be based on an estimate of the current year's sales of organic food. In the event that the current calendar year's sales exceed the estimate, the department may bill the handler for the additional fee. In the event that the current calendar year's sales are less than the estimate, the handler may request a refund for the reduced fee. In addition, new applicants must pay a seventy-five dollar new applicant fee.
(3) The cost per facility must be based on the following fee schedule. The appropriate fee must accompany the application.
| ORGANIC SALES | FEE | ||
| Sales under | $ 25,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 75 | |
| $ 25,001 | - | $ 50,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 150 |
| $ 50,001 | - | $ 75,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 225 |
| $ 75,001 | - | $ 100,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 300 |
| $ 100,001 | - | $ 200,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 400 |
| $ 200,001 | - | $ 300,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 500 |
| $ 300,001 | - | $ 400,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 600 |
| $ 400,001 | - | $ 500,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 700 |
| $ 500,001 | - | $ 750,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 900 |
| $ 750,001 | - | $ 1,000,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 1,000 |
| $1,000,001 | - | $ 1,250,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 1,250 |
| $1,250,001 | - | $ 1,500,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 1,500 |
| $1,500,001 | - | $ 2,000,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 2,000 |
| $2,000,001 | - | $ 2,500,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 2,500 |
| $2,500,001 | - | $ 3,000,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 3,000 |
| $3,000,001 | - | $ 4,000,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 3,500 |
| $4,000,001 | - | $ 5,000,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 4,000 |
| $5,000,001 | - | $ 6,000,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 5,000 |
| $6,000,001 | - | $ 7,000,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 6,000 |
| $7,000,001 | - | $ 8,000,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 7,000 |
| $8,000,001 | - | $ 9,000,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 8,000 |
| $9,000,001 | - | $10,000,000 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 9,000 |
| over | $10,000,001 | . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $10,000 | |
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Two inspections within the state of Washington are provided for under the application and certification fees. Additional inspections, if necessary or requested, will be charged to the applicant at the rate of thirty dollars per hour plus mileage set at the rate established by the state office of financial management. Out-of-state inspections, if necessary or requested, shall be at the rate of $30/hr. plus transportation costs.
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(a) Inspection of the applicant by the department of agriculture showed no use of prohibited materials or practices as defined in chapter 15.86 RCW or rules adopted thereunder; and
(b) Recordkeeping practices meet the requirements specified in rules adopted under chapter 15.86 RCW; and
(c) Analysis of samples taken by the department of agriculture showed no prohibited substance usage or contamination; and
(d) No application of prohibited substances, as defined in chapter 16-154 WAC, has been applied to the site being certified for:
• At least three years prior to the harvest of organic food; or
• At least one year prior to the harvest of transitional food.
Organic producers certified under this chapter may use the attached organic producer logo to identify organic food products.
Transitional producers certified under this chapter may use the attached transitional producer logo to identify transitional food products.
(2) For each site, the director must review the application, inspection report and results of any samples collected to determine that the producer has complied with the conditions for organic or transitional food certification on that site. For each site, a certificate will be issued when the director determines that the producer has complied with the conditions for organic or transitional food producer certification on that site.
(3) In no event shall organic food products be distributed or sold prior to the issuing of an organic food certificate by the department of agriculture for that year. New applicants and new sites must be inspected by the department before an organic food certificate is issued.
(4) Beginning in the year 2002, each site must meet the following conditions prior to the issuance of an organic food producer certificate for that site:
(a) The site must have been previously certified as organic; or
(b) The site must have been certified as second year transitional in the previous year; or
(c) The producer has documentation that verifies that the site was in pasture or not being farmed during the previous two years; or
(d) The department determines that the site was producing organic crops in the previous year and the producer was exempted from certification under RCW 15.86.090 (2)(b).
(5) Beginning in the year 2003, prior to the issuance of a second year transitional food producer certificate:
(a) The site must have been certified as first year transitional in the previous year; or
(b) The producer has documentation that verifies that the site was in pasture or not being farmed during the previous year; or
(c) The department determines that the site was producing first year transitional crops in the previous year and the producer was exempted from certification under RCW 15.86.090 (2)(b).
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(a) Inspection of the processor or handler by the department of agriculture showed no use of prohibited materials or practices as defined in chapter 15.86 RCW or rules adopted thereunder; and
(b) Recordkeeping practices meet the requirements specified in rules adopted under chapter 15.86 RCW; and
(c) Analysis of samples taken by the department of agriculture showed no prohibited substance usage or contamination.
(2) The director must review the application, inspection report and results of any samples collected to determine that the processor or handler has complied with the conditions for organic food certification. An organic food certificate will be issued when the director determines that the processor or handler has complied with the conditions for organic food certification.
(3) In no event shall organic food products be processed or handled by a facility prior to the issuing of an organic food certificate by the department of agriculture for that year. New applicants must be inspected by the department before an organic food certificate is issued.
(4) Processors certified under this chapter may use the attached organic processor logo to identify organic food products processed by the facility.
(5) Handlers certified under this chapter may use the attached organic handler logo to identify organic food products handled by the facility.
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(1) Violated the standards for certification which are set forth in RCW 15.86.030 or any rules adopted under chapter 15.86 RCW;
(2) Filed an application for certification which is false or misleading in any particular;
(3) Violated any of the provisions of this chapter;
(4) Failed to provide records as required under chapter 15.86 RCW or any rules adopted under chapter 15.86 RCW; or
(5) Failed to allow inspection to take place.
The director may issue an order denying, suspending, or revoking that producer, processor, or handler's certification under this program. The director may also issue an order directing the producer, processor or handler to take other appropriate action to correct the violation. If appropriate action is taken, the producer, processor or handler may be returned to its previous status under the program.
Any producer, processor, or handler who has received notice that its certification may be denied, suspended, or revoked under this section may apply for a hearing under the Washington Administrative Procedure Act, chapter 34.05 RCW.
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(2) Applications for export and transaction certificates must be submitted on forms furnished by the department. The applicant must furnish all information requested on the application. A separate application must be made for each export and transaction certificate.
(3) The fee for export and transaction certificates shall be thirty dollars per application.
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