The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is helping organic producers and handlers cover certification costs as part of the Department's effort to put Farmers First and Make America Healthy Again. USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA) is accepting applications to help with organic certification costs for the 2025 and 2026 program years through the Organic Certification Cost Share Program (OCCSP), which covers up to 75% of eligible organic certification costs. Producers and handlers must apply by Dec. 31, 2026, for both program years. 

Cost Share Assistance      

OCCSP provides cost share assistance to producers and handlers for the costs of obtaining or maintaining organic certification under the National Organic Program, which is administered by USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service. Producers and handlers are eligible to receive 75% of the costs, up to $750 for each of the following scopes: crops, wild crops, livestock, processing/handling and state organic program fees.      

FSA will make payments as applications are received on a first-come, first-served basis until available funds are depleted.      

Eligibility     

To be eligible for OCCSP, a producer or handler must have their USDA organic certification for the applicable program year at the time of application and must have paid fees or expenses related to the initial certification or renewal from a certifying agent during the program year. For program year 2025, they must have possessed a USDA organic certification at any time during the program year.    

There are four USDA organic regulation recognized scopes that must be individually inspected and certified: crops, livestock, wild crops, and handling. The scopes must be listed on the producer or handler's organic certificate to be eligible for OCCSP. Eligible costs include:    

• Application and administrative fees for USDA organic certification  
• Inspection fees for USDA organic certification, including travel and per diem costs for organic inspectors 
• USDA organic certification costs, including fees necessary to access international markets with which AMS has equivalency agreements or arrangements  
• State organic program fees  
• User and sale assessment fees for USDA organic certification  
• Postage costs for materials related to obtaining or renewing USDA organic certification.    

How to Apply     

To apply, producers and handlers should contact their local FSA county office. As part of completing the OCCSP application, producers and handlers will need to provide documentation of their organic certification and eligible expenses. Organic producers and handlers may also apply for OCCSP through participating state agencies.    

Opportunity for State Agency Participation     

FSA will soon announce a 30-day application period for state agencies to apply through grants.gov to administer OCCSP.    

If a state agency chooses to participate in OCCSP, both the state agency and FSA county offices in that state will accept OCCSP applications and make payments to eligible certified operations. However, producers and handlers may not receive OCCSP payments for the same scope through both the state agency and their FSA county office.   For more information, producers and handlers can visit the OCCSP webpage or contact their local FSA county office.