The largest organic dairy in the US has agreed to stop using the organic label on some of its milk after the US government threatened to tear up its organic certification.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Aurora Organic Dairy struck a deal with the US Department of Agriculture to stave off the threat of having its certification revoked.
The agreement comes after criticism that Aurora products labeled as organic were not made under regulations for organic production. The organic industry is a fast-growing and lucrative industry in the US with such products commanding higher prices than their conventional counterparts.
As Aurora has grown to become the largest organic dairy in the US, it has attempted to replicate the efficiencies of conventional dairy farms. As a consequence, Aurora faced claims that it has not been abiding by rules governing organic production.
Under the agreement with the USDA, Aurora has been ordered to, among other things, provide more pasture for its cows; reduce the number of cows; and not market certain products as “organic”.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalDataBruce Knight, under secretary for marketing and regulatory programs at the USDA, said the agreement would give US consumers confidence that the organic milk they buy in supermarkets is organic.
“The organic industry is booming and the National Organic Program is a high priority for USDA,” Knight said.
Farming lobby group The Cornucopia Institute, which has filed numerous complaints against Aurora’s practices, said it was “proud” that its work had led to the agreement between Aurora and the USDA.
However, Mark A. Kastel, co-founder of the Cornucopia Institute, said he was not “wholly satisfied” with the deal.
“After years of delay Aurora, having expanded to five industrial scale dairies in Colorado and Texas, is still being allowed to remain in business despite being found guilty of multiple violations of organic law,” Kastel said.
“These were not accidental violations – they were willful and premeditated violations of the law by a multimillion dollar business enterprise, the largest organic dairy producer in the US.”
Kastel said Aurora had been able to build its business while flouting rules on organic production. “During all of this time, Aurora was building market share, helping drive the price down for ‘real’ organic farmers, and being a driving force behind the current surplus in the organic dairy market,” Kastel said. “They were defrauding consumers by selling milk that did not qualify to be labeled as organic.”
Aurora claimed its agreement with the USDA served as a “dismissal” of Cornucopia’s complaint. “We are very pleased with both the dismissal and the valuable input from USDA,” said Mark Retzloff, president and chief organic officer at Aurora.
“This result allows us to accelerate the transformation of our Platteville organic dairy farm.”
