Is the Stevens County CSA Certified Organic?

Our program is not Certified Organic through the State of Washington for one simple reason: we believe that a face-to-face relationship with our customers provides more transparency and honesty about our program than a “Certified Organic” label ever can.

Our growers are dedicated to our Naturally Grown standards that outline our commitment to be good stewards of our land while raising nutritious, additive free food. (Click here to read our Naturally Grown standards.)

The Certified Organic program through the State of Washington includes a mass of paperwork, inspections, fees and 1 percent of our gross sales every year. In exchange for this cost, producers can use the word ‘organic’ without penalty. Without the Organic Certification, you cannot use the word 'organic', according to the state.

We think this Certified Organic fee set-up would be fair if a State of Washington employee came out and did 1 percent of our work every year in exchange for 1 percent of our sales. But that isn’t the case. They want us to pay fees, complete paperwork, undergo inspections and then pay them 1 percent of our gross sales as well. Many of our farmers feel this system is exploitive and not in the best interest of the farmer or the consumer.

However, we understand that some producers favor the Organic Certification because they sell through a third party i.e. a grocery store, cooperative or other group that does their distribution or marketing for them. In this case, the Organic Certification allows the consumer to know the product was raised according to a certain set of standards. In this instance, we can see the merit in certification.

But our program is all about cutting out the middleman. We want to shake your hand, answer your questions and let you see our farms. In this way, you not only have the assurance that we are raising food that is safe and sustainable, but you also have a relationship with the person who grows your food. In our opinion, if you can’t trust us through a relationship, no stamp or certification will earn your trust either.

So when you are judging the wholesomeness and sustainable virtues of our product, we invite you to talk to our farmers and let their enthusiastic stewardship of the land be your “seal of approval.”