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PCO – Pennsylvania Certified Organic – is our farm’s certifying agency.

Here’s the email I received from PCO and from the Organic Farmers Association this week:

“Dear PCO Community,  

Federal agencies are being directed to implement significant reductions in force (RIF). USDA Secretary Rollins recently announced that the agency will be “optimizing and reducing the size of the workforce to become more efficient.” The Department of Health and Human Services has already eliminated over 10,000 positions, and USDA employees have received a second round of deferred resignation offers. We anticipate that decisions regarding National Organic Program (NOP) staffing are imminent.

The National Organic Program oversees a U.S. organic sector valued at more than $70 billion, yet the program operates with a staff of just 85 people. Any further reductions to this already lean team will severely impact their ability to support new and expanding operations, enforce organic standards, deliver timely services, and uphold the consumer trust that is critical to the organic label. Your voice is urgently needed to help prevent these cuts.

The National Organic Coalition, along with the Organic Trade Association and Organic Farmers Association, has drafted a letter to Secretary Rollins making the case for a fully staffed and supported NOP. PCO has signed onto this letter.“