Organic certification cost share program available
The Organic Certification Cost Share Program (OCCSP) provides cost share assistance to producers and handlers of agricultural products who are obtaining or renewing their certification under the National Organic Program (NOP). Certified operations may receive up to 75 percent of their certification costs paid from Oct. 1, 2017, through Sept. 30, 2018, not to exceed $750 per certification scope. The deadline to apply for the Organic Certification Cost Share Program for 2018 is Oct. 31.
Eligible costs include application fees, inspection costs, fees related to equivalency agreement/arrangement requirements, travel/per diem for inspectors, user fees, sales assessments and postage.
Ineligible costs include equipment, materials, supplies, transitional certification fees, late fees and inspections necessary to address National Organic Program regulatory violations.
Producers and handlers may submit OCCSP applications to FSA county offices or they may apply through participating state agencies, which will be listed at https://www.fsa.usda.gov/programs-and-services/occsp/index as their agreements to administer the program are finalized.
The FSA OCCSP application form is available at USDA’s eForms site, by selecting “Browse forms” and entering “OCCSP” in the “title or keywords” field on the search page.
To learn more about organic certification cost share, visit www.fsa.usda.gov/organic or contact Cristin Cantan at 933-8338.