Ann Arbor’s NSF International, a global public health and safety organization, has been named the program manager for the Regenerative Organic Certified (ROC) program, a holistic agriculture certification focused on pasture-based animal welfare, fairness for farmers and workers, and requirements for soil health and land management.
The program was developed by the Regenerative Organic Alliance and covers requirements for farming and ranching operations, transportation, slaughter, and certain processing facilities that produce food and fiber.
The goals of the ROC are to increase soil organic matter over time, improve animal welfare, provide economic stability and fairness, and create resilient regional ecosystems and communities. ROC uses the USDA National Organic Program as the core of its program. NSF International facilitated the public comments process in 2017 as ROA developed the program.
“We’re expanding our involvement beyond managing the public comment and are now leading program implementation and certification body management for the ROA,” says Jessica Evans, director of standards development at NSF International. “The Regenerative Organic Certification program recognizes the efforts of certified organic producers who are demonstrating ambitious commitments to animal welfare, soil health, and worker fairness.”
NSF International will train and educate certifying bodies, collect data, and manage audit information and reports. It will also coordinate a pilot program with various sizes and types of farms, facilities, and verifiers to test the audit process and certification criteria before ROC is launched.
NSF International is an independent organization that develops standards and tests, and certifies products for the food, water, health sciences, and consumer goods industries. It was founded in 1944. It also offers USDA National Organic Program certification and Certified Transitional certification through Quality Assurance International, a part of NSF International’s family of companies.
