by Shelley Proffitt Eagan, Proffitt Family Cattle Co.

Considering Becoming Certified Organic?

Proffitt Family Cattle Company's happy cattle graze tall grass. Photo from proffittfarms.com.

If you already raise grass-fed beef and don’t utilize antibiotics or hormone implants on your cattle, you may think that becoming a USDA certified organic beef producer will set you apart from the competition without too much more effort. What could be more organic than not feeding your animals commercial feeds and leaving off the inputs so synonymous with conventional beef? There are a couple of other key differences that you will want to consider before applying for organic certification. All your organic practices need to be in place before you apply and are audited by a certifying agent. The process of becoming a certified organic producer is certainly not easy (it took us 3 years), but we did it and so can you!

Organic Feed

Stop and think for a moment about what exactly goes into the body of your cattle. Let’s start with the biggest input: food! What exactly do they eat? If your cattle eat pasture grasses and hay, then you will need to get your grazing pastures and hay fields certified organic. This means no herbicides, pesticides, and commercial fertilizers and all of your seeds must be organic for 3 years. The 3 years will begin from the last application of any of those materials. Keep in mind that a soil supplement, like lime, is okay and chicken litter is also an acceptable form of fertilizer while municipal sludge is NOT organic. If you use a

bag of feed to call them up, even very rarely, it must be certified organic.  We find it easiest to use hay for this or organic alfalfa pellets. When you wean your calves, what do you feed them during this time of stress? There are not many options out there if you choose to be grass-fed and certified organic as they both limit using conventional feeds. Organic alfalfa pellets are the only option we have found that meets both requirements.

Organic Supplements

Thinking further about what goes into your cattle, the mineral supplement you use is something you must consider if you want to become certified organic. This is a tough challenge and will depend on the make-up of your soil. What minerals your soil lacks, your grass will also lack. You must know this in order to meet your animals’ mineral needs. If they have rusting of hair on the shoulders, your soil might be deficient in copper. Do a soil test of your grazing pastures to know for sure. You can also get a full mineral profile done on the liver of a harvested beeve. This will tell you more precisely what minerals your animals have in abundance and where there are deficiencies. Your local extension agent can direct you to the nearest NCDA Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory. Most conventional pre-mixed supplements contain urea and additives to make them more palatable, but these are not organic.

Organic Treatments and Cattle Management  

Another seemingly large hurdle to jump is the de-worming issue. If you are like most cattlefolk, you have been taught that you must deworm your cattle with pour-ons, sprays, or oral applications every year. There are some organic options out there but, again, it’s best to manage the cattle so they aren’t exposed to the worms in the first place. Move them frequently. Do not allow them to graze pastures too low during the times of year when parasites breed. Use holistic treatments, like diatomaceous earth (DE), as a supplement to make their systems uninhabitable for parasites. DE will also help with external parasites.

The last common input to consider is fly spray. There are organic fly sprays available that will do the trick for short amounts of time but genetic selection and whole farm management can make it much easier. Have too many flies? Make more bird houses; have the chickens follow the herd and eat the fly larva from the manure; move the herd away from manure each day and consider where the flies are in the ecosystem of the farm. Ever notice how some cows in your herd have very few flies and some who receive the same treatment and access to the same pastures are covered in them? Take note of such traits when you cull.

Organic Processing

Lucky for you, there is already a certified USDA Organic processor here in the Carolinas! May’s Meats, in Taylorsville, NC, can process your organic cattle correctly so that your meat can have the USDA Organic stamp on every package!  Back in the spring of 2011, Misty, at May’s Meats, and I sat down and plowed through the application for processors.  She took it from there and had their plant ready for the audit this fall.  The certified animals have their own holding pen, no tool or machine touches them that has not been sanitized, they have a designated hanging space, and their meat will be cut with tools that touched no other beef!  If you have customers who ask about the cleanliness of processing, it doesn’t get any cleaner than certified organic. This final organic processing piece adds a lot of value to our product.

Becoming certified organic means you must look at your whole farm practices and management strategies.  Many of the obstacles that I mention above can be dealt with in a holistic manner and through proper management.  If you decide you want to get certified, your next steps should be to read the NOP standards found at http://1.usa.gov/wIeyaT, implement the changes on your farm, then find a certifying agent near you and complete their application process.  It may be a bit more work, but it’s by no means impossible!  And the pay off?  Healthier animals, cleaner meat, and happy customers.

Shelley Proffitt Eagan and her family raise 100% Grass Fed, Certified Organic Beef in the Charlotte area. They are the first certified organic beef cattle farm in NC and one of only a handful in the United States that are certified USDA organic and 100% grass fed.

> Visit them at www.proffittfarms.com.

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