U.S. May Exempt Organic Farmers From Fees
The U.S. government is proposing to exempt producers and marketers of 100 percent organic products from most marketing program payments, including producers of 28 regional varieties of fruits, vegetables and nuts, from California dried prunes to Washington hazelnuts and Florida tomatoes. Currently, growers who sell these commodities must pay fees to support "marketing order programs" - educational, research, promotional and quality-control programs administered by boards or committees.
However, growers such as the Sowden brothers, who grow organic prunes in northern California, say they are tired of being treated like conventional farmers when it comes to paying fees to an industry marketing board, with Buzz Sowden stating that, "We do not market in the same areas as conventional food. We do not compete with conventional food in that we sell at a higher price. We have to pay for organic certification and then have to pay the marketing order dues on top of that. We find it excessive and definitely not to our benefit."Under the government's proposal, organic sellers no longer would have to fund the marketing, advertising or promotional portions of the programs. As a result, they would be exempted from about 65 percent of the fees they now pay. The department is preparing rules covering the same organic exemption for 16 other research and promotion programs that are administered nationally. Among them are the milk and pork programs -- sources of the famed "Got Milk?" and "Pork, The Other White Meat" campaigns.
This change was inserted in the 2002 farm bill after lobbying by the Organic Trade Association, which says organic products now account for about 2 percent of all food grown in the United States. The Organic Trade Association's executive director was quoted as saying, "The feeling is pretty much universal that the thing that sells organic, whether it's milk or beef or an orange or a box of cereal, is the fact that it's organically grown, not that it's another box of cereal or piece of beef. Organic producers felt that the scientific research and the promotion did not serve them, did not sell any more organic."
John McClung, who manages marketing order programs for Texas citrus, onions and melons, was quoted as saying, "I see frankly no reason they should be exempted from the assessments requirement. They essentially receive the same benefits as anybody else. You pool the assessments, you do marketing and promotion activities, they benefit from it as much as anybody else." McClung and others, however, said the money contributed by organic handlers represented a small percentage of their total budget. (Associated Press via Agnet, 1/3/04).
