• Australia and the US do not currently have a government-to-government agreement (equivalency) in place for the trade in organic goods.
  
  
• Trade in organics between the two countries is facilitated by conformity arrangement, via direct engagement between the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Australian organic certifiers.
  
  
• An exporter of Australian products labelled as organic or bio-dynamic to the US must utilise the services of an organic certifier approved by the Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (‘the department’), and accredited by the USDA.
  
  
• These certifiers are best placed to answer most questions regarding exporting organic products to the US.
  
  
• Organic certification verifies that products meet all requirements in the USDA organic regulations under the National Organic Program (NOP), from farm to market.
  
  
• Certifiers are responsible for issuing the USDA’s National Organic Program Import Certificate (NOP Import Certificate).
  
  
• The department strongly encourages exporters to verify import requirements for all organic goods with their importers prior to export.

Scope

• The scope of the USDA’s National Organic Program (NOP), encompasses:
  
  
  • crops,
    
    
  • wild crops,
    
    
  • greenhouse products,
    
    
  • livestock,
    
    
  • processed products.
  
  
• Exclusions include:
  
  
  • over-the-counter (OTC) medicines or health aids,
    
    
  • fertilizers,
    
    
  • soil amendments,
    
    
  • manure.
  
  
• There are currently no USDA organic standards for aquatic animal products.
  
  
• As such, aquatic animal products (e.g., fish, shellfish) are considered outside the scope of the USDA organic regulations.
  
  
• Aquatic animal products that are certified organic under another government’s organic regulations may be sold as organic in the US, however they may not refer to USDA organic certification or use the USDA Organic Seal.
  
  
• The requirement for a NOP Import Certificate does not apply to aquatic animal products (use of NOP Import Certificates is covered in a section below).
  
  
• The USDA organic regulations do not currently include a separate standard for honey. However, honey is considered in-scope and may therefore be certified to the NOP as per other goods.
  
  
• Mushrooms and pet food are also considered in-scope, although exporters should ascertain their exact current status under the USDA organic regulations.
  
  
  • As of October 2025, the USDA is proposing a rule (90 FR 20133) to rescind the Market Development for Mushrooms and Pet Food (MDR) final rule (89 FR 104367).
    
    
  • The Market Development for Mushrooms and Pet Food final rule (89 FR 104367) made amendments to the USDA organic regulations to clarify standards for organic mushrooms and organic pet food.
    
    
  • Organic operations must continue to comply with the requirements of the MDR rule (89 FR 104367) unless the rule is rescinded as proposed under 90 FR 20133.

Certifiers

• A list of department approved Australian certifiers may be found here (however, not all of these may be accredited to offer certification services for the US market, organic producers are responsible for making their own enquiries).
  
  
• A list of accredited certifiers may be found on the USDA website here.
  
  
• Exporters and importers, in addition to producers, must be certified organic under the NOP. The exporter will approach their own certifier for the NOP Import Certificate (use of NOP Import Certificates is covered in a section below).
  
  
• More information may be found in the USDA’s Frequently Asked Questions.
  
  
• Exporters should submit export documents to certifiers in a timeframe sufficiently prior to departure, as per the advice from certifiers. This provides adequate time for:
  
  
  • certifiers to review documents,
    
    
  • exporters to correct any issues found with the documents,
    
    
  • certifiers to verify the foods as being organic and eligible for export.
  
  
• In cases where, due to unforeseen circumstances, it is not possible for the exporter to provide these documents to the certifier sufficiently prior to departure, the exporter should contact the certifier immediately to discuss.
  
  
• Any organic shipment that arrives in the United States after 1 October 2025 without a valid NOP Import Certificate will be subject to immediate re-export, donation (with restrictions), or destruction.

Use of the NOP Import Certificate

• The use of the NOP Import Certificate is designed to ensure there is oversight and traceability of organic agricultural products imported into the US.
  
  
• Each shipment of organic agricultural products imported into the US must be associated with a NOP Import Certificate.
  
  
• A certified exporter sends export shipment data to its certifier and requests an import certificate.
  
  
• The certifier, who is accredited by the USDA, verifies that the shipment is compliant with the NOP regulations, then issues the import certificate in the USDA Organic INTEGRITY Database (INTEGRITY).
  
  
• The certifier electronically transfers the import certificate and/or data to the requesting exporter, who then transfers it electronically to the importer in the United States. (A physical copy does not need to accompany a shipment; electronic transfer of records is already common in the industry.)
  
  
• The U.S. importer or broker uploads the import certificate data into the Customs and Border Protection’s Automated Commercial Environment (ACE), the electronic system through which the trade community reports imports and exports, and the government determines admissibility.
  
  
• The importer or broker also verifies compliance of the import, including confirmation that the shipment has a valid import certificate associated with the shipment.
  
  
• The NOP pulls shipment entry data from ACE to verify that the import certificate associated with the shipment is valid. The information is used to verify compliance with the USDA organic regulations, track shipment quantities, and conduct organic traceability investigations.
  
  
• A NOP Import Certificate may be issued for single or multiple shipments or a specific time frame, depending on the certifiers’ oversight systems. One NOP Import Certificate is issued per commodity/ product or Harmonised Tariff Schedule (HTS) code.
  
  
• It is the responsibility of the exporter/ final handler to provide the electronic NOP Import Certificate to the US importer, for entry into ACE.
  
  
• More information may be found in the USDA’s Frequently Asked Questions.​

Whole of supply chain requirements

• To qualify for organic labelling and marketing under the NOP, the whole chain of organic production is required to be inspected and certified, including importers and exporters.
  
  
• However, exemptions exist in relation to storing, receiving and/or loading, for example storage facilities handling retail ready product in tamperproof packaging.
  
  
• Certifiers may conduct supply chain audits to verify the origin and chain of custody of high-risk products.

Labelling

• The NOP’s organic product labelling rules cover wording allowed on both the front panel and the information panel of a packaged product.
  
  
• Organic product labels must be reviewed and approved by a USDA-accredited certifier before being used in the marketplace.
  
  
• There are four different certification types/ labels allowed under the NOP:
  
  
  • ‘100 Percent Organic’ – used to label any product that contains 100 percent organic ingredients. These products may use the USDA Organic Seal. Most raw, unprocessed or minimally processed farm crops can be labelled ‘100 percent organic’,
    
    
  • ‘Organic’ – any product that uses at least 95 per cent organic ingredients. These products may use the USDA Organic Seal,
    
    
  • ‘Made with Organic​’ – any product that uses at least 70 per cent organic ingredients. These products are not permitted to use the USDA Organic Seal,
    
    
  • Specific Organic Ingredient Listings – any product using less than 70 per cent organic food, must specify which ingredients are organic. These products are not permitted to use the USDA Organic Seal.
  
  
• More information on labelling may be found in Subpart D of the US organic regulations.
  

Additional labelling requirements for alcoholic beverages

• All alcoholic beverages must meet both USDA organic requirements and Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) regulations, including with regards to sulfite labelling requirements.
  
  
• Any use of sulfites additives results in the wines thus produced not being able to use the NOP Organic Seal; these wines are only eligible to use the ‘made with’ label.
  
  
• Additional guidance for labelling for organic alcoholic beverages may be found here:
  
  
  • wine,
    
    
  • malt beverages,
    
    
  • distilled spirits.

Prohibitions

• The National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances within the organic regulations provides evaluation criteria and lists for allowed and prohibited substances, methods and ingredients.
  
  
• Most synthetic substances are prohibited, albeit with certain exemptions, for example vaccines for livestock. There are also some nonsynthetic substances that are prohibited.
  
  
• The use of the following is specifically prohibited by the NOP:
  
  
  • most synthetic pesticides,
    
    
  • growth hormones,
    
    
  • genetic engineering,
    
    
  • ionising radiation,
    
    
  • sewage sludge.
  
  
• There are also ‘excluded methods’ addressed by the regulations.
  
  
• A variety of methods used to genetically modify organisms or influence their growth and development by means that are not possible under natural conditions or processes and are not considered compatible with organic production under the NOP.
  
  
• Such methods include cell fusion, microencapsulation and macroencapsulation, and recombinant DNA technology (including gene deletion, gene doubling, introducing a foreign gene, and changing the positions of genes when achieved by recombinant DNA technology). However, this does not include the use of traditional breeding, conjugation, fermentation, hybridization, in vitro fertilization, or tissue culture.
  
  
• Moreover, the prohibition on Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) extends up the supply chain. For example, an organic cow cannot eat GMO alfalfa or corn, and an organic soup producer cannot use any GMO ingredients.

• ​Under the NOP, for three years immediately prior to harvest, organic farmers cannot apply prohibited substances to the land. During this transition period, farmers cannot sell, label, or represent their products as organic.