US: USDA revamps organic standards body

By: just-food.com | 8 February 2008

The body that monitors organic standards in the US is to be restructured, the US Department of Agriculture has announced.

The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), an office of the USDA, is reorganizing the National Organic Program into three branches - accreditation, auditing & training; and compliance & enforcement.

Lloyd Day, administrator of AMS, which oversees the programme, said it had been experiencing growing pains along with the organic industry. "This new year brings an opportunity to make changes in the programme to keep up with growth in the organic industry," he added.

Deputy administrator for transportation & marketing programs Barbara Robinson will assume overall leadership for the NOP in addition to her other duties.

Mark Bradley will assume leadership for accreditation, auditing and training; Richard Mathews will head up the standards development and review branch.

No decision has been made for leadership of compliance and enforcement at this time.

Sectors: Food safety, Natural & organic