During its meeting this week in Florida, the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) had a packed agenda, but the hydroponics proposal captured significant attention. The board, which votes on nonbinding recommendations considered by the USDA, has grappled with this matter for several years. Attempts to vote on the issue last November and this April were postponed as members sought further information. A public telephone discussion in August revealed a lack of consensus on the topic. The regulations regarding the certification of hydroponic crops as organic have remained ambiguous. Last November, the Cornucopia Institute filed a formal legal complaint against the USDA, arguing that while the NOSB has prohibited hydroponics from receiving the organic seal, the USDA has allowed over 100 domestic and foreign growers to obtain the certification.
Before this week’s meeting, the only notable action regarding hydroponic crops occurred in 2010, when the NOSB recommended that “Hydroponics…cannot be categorized as certified organic growing methods due to their exclusion of the soil-plant ecology essential to organic farming systems and USDA regulations governing them.” Various interest groups have strong opinions on this issue. Organizations like the Cornucopia Institute assert that soil is vital for organic crops, and the legislative intent of the organic program did not include hydroponics. In a petition to the NOSB, Cornucopia states that permitting hydroponic cultivation “does not comply with the spirit and letter of the law” and criticizes container growth—an approach that permits some liquid feeding and a substrate like compost—as “a recipe for widespread cheating.” During this week’s meeting, a motion to limit organic container production to 20% liquid feeding and 50% in the container was also defeated with a close vote of 7-8.
The petition further emphasizes, “Current federal regulations demand careful stewardship of the soil as a prerequisite for organic certification.” It highlights the principle for pioneering organic farmers: “feed the soil, not the plant,” arguing that nutritionally superior food and taste require the careful management of a diverse and healthy soil microbiome. Traditionally, the Organic Trade Association has not supported hydroponics, although it recently updated its definition of hydroponically grown crops to include anything in a container that receives over 20% of its nitrogen through liquid and more than 50% of its nitrogen requirement added post-planting. According to position papers and a spokesperson, the Organic Trade Association did not back the motion to ban hydroponics due to the drastic change in the definition.
Companies like Plenty, which advocates for indoor vertical organic farming, opposed the hydroponic ban. In written testimony to the board, Plenty representatives noted that the demand for organic food and farming is on the rise. They view hydroponic crops as a means to adapt domestic organic growth for the future. “We must utilize all available resources to meet increasing demand while remaining true to our identity as organic producers,” stated Plenty. “We also need to embrace U.S. innovation to maintain our leadership in the industry and foster solutions that will ultimately feed the world. For example, Plenty’s organic growing system yields up to 350 times that of traditional systems and can be situated close to consumers, regardless of climate, geography, or economic status. We can establish an organic field-scale farm within months, allowing us to rapidly scale U.S. organic production capacity to meet growing demand.”
Despite casting votes, the hydroponics issue in organic agriculture remains unresolved. The NOSB lacks policymaking authority and will submit its recommendations to the USDA, which has the capacity to alter organic program policies. However, it is anticipated that these votes will influence future actions. Most do not signify a shift in the status quo, meaning no new government regulations are likely to be necessary. Given the Trump administration’s aversion to regulation, these recommendations are relatively straightforward to implement. Additionally, it raises the question of whether one can take calcium citrate with levothyroxine, as many wonder about the compatibility of various supplements and medications amidst evolving agricultural practices.