THE ONE-MINUTE ACTIVIST

May 2010

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May, 2010
Secretary Tom Vilsack
U.S. Department of Agriculture
1400 Independence Ave., S.W.
Washington, DC 20250

Secretary Vilsack,

I am happy that USDA has made it clear that organic dairy cattle need to graze on pasture, but I am concerned about the proposed rule for beef cattle. There are several things the agency could do to strengthen this proposed rule, Docket # AMS-TM-06-0198

1. Clarify how the requirement that producers must “maintain” animals on pasture and the allowance of “dry lots, yards or feedlots” for grain finishing can both be followed.
   This is the kind of confusing and contradictory language that allowed the “access to pasture” debate to rage for so long in the organic dairy industry.
2. The agency needs to make clear that, even during finishing, cattle have to spend time on pasture under the conditions spelled out in the dairy rule.
3. Many organic producers are raising grass-fed cattle and they need to communicate this to the growing number of consumers looking for grass-fed beef.

Two different departments of USDA already established “grass-fed” labeling programs.

I urge the agency to figure out a way for organic producers to use these labeling programs so that consumers can find a product that is both organic and grass-fed.

I have high expectations for organic products and I do not expect organic beef to come from animals that spent up to four months confined in a feedlot.

I urge you to clarify the standards for beef cattle so that grain finishing does not mean confinement and to allow producers who are both organic and grass-fed to distinguish themselves in the marketplace.

I look forward to hearing from you,