In a last-minute effort to avoid a government shutdown, Congress passed a spending package in December of 2024 that extends the U.S. Farm Bill for another year. However, this legislation leaves out critical funding for key organic programs, including the Organic Certification Cost Share Program (OCCSP).
This fee covers your basic certification services for the upcoming certification season, including review of your certification documents for compliance with the regulations. It includes the PCO certification manual, material lists and 2 annual material review requests, newsletter, and educational events & materials at no additional charge. You also have direct access to a certification specialist’s expertise via phone, mail or email. This fee is invoiced at the beginning of each calendar year. Operations must inform PCO that they wish to surrender by the annual update paperwork due date to avoid fees.
The sales assessment fee is calculated on your annual gross organic sales for farming, handling and processing operations in the previous year. You will receive an invoice for these fees after we receive your application or annual update.
Additional fees will be assessed for the type of operation (e.g. Livestock, Processor/Handler) if requesting certification in other scopes. These fees cover the additional time, paperwork, complexity, inspector assignment, and reviewer expertise required to certify operations that are more complex than those within the crops scope of certification.
The inspection fee includes the inspector’s time spent in preparation for, execution of, and final production of the inspection report. In addition, travel expenses including time, transportation costs, lodging, meals, etc. will be assessed. PCO works hard to coordinate inspections in geographic regions to minimize travel time. You can lower your costs by having records and materials close at hand and well-organized when the inspector arrives.
Other fees may include a application fee (includes processing of application, Certification and National Organic Program (NOP) manuals, Material Lists and guidance documents), expedited services, and additional fees related to circumstances beyond the regular certification process.