Wild Crop Certification

Wild crop certification is one of the easier ways to start with organics in that it can require very little land development if any. It is also a way to begin turning land, traditionally not used for agriculture, into an additional profit center. Harvesters will still have to go through a certification process, but for the actual crop production, this can require little to no financial investment.

Under the USDA-NOP standards certified organic, wild crops must be harvested from a designated area that has had no prohibited chemicals or products applied to it for a period of three years prior to harvest. It must be harvested in a manner that insures such harvesting or collection will not be destructive to the environment and will sustain the growth and production of the wild crop. This section will give guidance to the processes and procedures for wild crop certification. It is not intended to be a substitute for, and final authority rest with the Organic Foods Production Act (OFPA) of 1990 (PDF) and regulations in Title 7, Part 205 of the Code of Federal Regulations.

Land Assessment

The first factor in determining whether wild crop can be certified organic is to determine whether the land it is on has been and can be organically isolated. The land must have been kept free of any banned substances under the USDA-NOP standards for a minimum of three years. Nonorganic practices on adjacent lands must also be prevented from encroaching on the land and crops to be certified. Most certifiers will require a field map that not only shows the land to be certified but the adjacent land as well. On the map the harvester will need to notate ownership and the areas where organic crops are to be harvested. They will also need to specify any natural or physical barriers to prevent cross pollution from adjacent lands, topography or diagrams showing the flow of water on the land, and storage, maintenance or production facilities to be used in the handling or distribution process.

Harvesting, Handling and Storage

When harvesting wild crops, harvesters must be able to ensure that all containers, bins and packaging materials are free of any synthetic fungicides, preservatives or fumigants. All reusable containers must be thoroughly cleaned by organic methods and have no risk of contamination prior to use. Organic harvests must be stored and moved in a way that prevents comingling with nonorganic crops or other prohibited materials, from the point of harvest all the way to the point of sale.

Labeling

If a harvester or producer plans on selling their crops with the use of a label displaying the USDA Certified Organic logo, claiming a product to be 100% organic or made with organic ingredients, any labels must be designed and submitted to the certifying agent for approval to ensure compliance with the USDA-NOP standards.