The (US) Organic Trade Association has welcomed the introduction of the Organic Market Development (OMD) Act in the Senate and the House of Representatives last week, saying the legislation will help unlock the potential of the organic marketplace and ensure the continued growth of organic in the United States.
The OMD Act is aimed at leveraging investments in new and expanded organic markets by funding and supporting increased processing capacity, market development activities, targeted equipment purchases, and other activities to increase consumption of domestic organic commodities. This legislation, is aimed at solving the supply chain gaps for the market to support organic farmers and businesses.
“We thank the sponsoring lawmakers for introducing this important legislation. With the strategic investments offered in the OMD Act, the organic community can unlock the potential of the organic marketplace and continue the growth trend and capitalize on the recent investments made by USDA in organic farming,” said Tom Chapman, CEO of the Organic Trade Association. “Passage of this legislation is key to ensuring transition and growth of organic at the farm level is carried through to the marketplace.”
The demand for organic in the US remains strong and continues to grow. So strong, says the OTA, that the growth has outpaced the infrastructure development needed for organic farmers and businesses to fully expand their markets and to capitalize on the economic benefits for growing organic. Lack of processing capacity and aggregation facilities, uncertain market access, and an insufficient supply of certain organic ingredients are all challenges that organic has to face in identifying and developing its markets, the trade group says.
While the US organic sector has expanded to an over $67 billion market, domestic organic acreage has not kept pace with the growth in demand for organic products. The OMD Act will enable more domestic producers to take advantage of the economic opportunity offered by the robust organic market.
“The Organic Market Development Act strongly compliments existing and proposed legislation with federal investments in organic research, farm-level transition opportunities, and process improvement for an effective oversight and regulatory function to ensure and maintain the organic standards and consumer confidence,” said Chapman.