[compost_tea] Re: USNOP Questions

From: Kirk Leonard <kirk_at_oregonatural.com>
Date: Wed, 17 Dec 2003 16:03:31 -0800

Replies to Ted and Dennis, suggestions, more info and questions. Not
short or sweet, sorry.

> Date: Tue, 16 Dec 2003 15:38:15 -0800
> From: "Ted Peterson" <ted.peterson_at_tcsn.net>
> Subject: Re: USNOP From The Back Seat - More Questions
>
> Guys:
>
> We will never get the approval you seek until the CT industry becomes as
powerful as the pesticide/fertilizer/chemical input industry. <

So Ted - we should just give up on influencing USNOP? I think not.

Data against compost tea is weak and unsubstantiated. Data against chem ag
is strong and substantiated, and increasingly widely accepted. There is
opportunity here to turn this around.

There are many examples of little guys winning big battles in US and world
history when they are right and diligent. If people had not spoken up, the
USNOP would include sewage sludge and gmo's as acceptable materials and
irradiation as an acceptable process... They can be swayed. These things
got bashed conclusively in 1997.

Compost tea is a flea on the USNOP elephant, and we can use our smallness to
get our nose under the tent if we bug them enough. (pun intended:)

I agree with everything you say, except your implication that there is no
present hope. I don't want to over-dramatize, but one man - Gandhi,
determined and diligent - sparked the downfall of the British empire,
spinning thread for cloth. To me, compost tea is analogous to that cloth,
and good compost the thread.

IF WE DON'T SPEAK UP, WHO WILL? I don't like many things the US
Congress or federal gov does these days, but on this one, I believe we can
make a big, positive difference - enough to take a stand and speak up.

Dennis asked if the following was a starting point for
conversation with our politicians in DC?
> Ask what's happening with compost tea and what the USDA/NOP
> schedule is for either outright or conditional approval, please.
> What is the USNOP status of compost teas today, and why are they taking so
> long to recognize compost teas are beneficial, inherently safe and
> organically sound? <

And my answer is yes. Strategy-wise, going for conditional approval will
probably get better results sooner.

Asking what is the status of compost tea at USNOP will get your rep staff
looking at it if they are anywise inclined. If they aren't, vote or
campaign for somebody else next time. Bug them in the meantime, if you have
to, anyway...

More questions:

Why is USNOP taking so long on compost tea support? (compost teas have been
around and beneficial for centuries - ACT is even better)
What are they actually doing? Why are CTTF deliberations secret?
Why have there been no reports of their activity? What is their schedule?
Is there a work plan? What is it?
I don't even know who all are on the task force - who's on the task force?
What logic or criteria or scientific research are they using for decisions?
What dangers do they think are there?
Why hasn't USDA funded compost tea research apart from tiny SARE
tidbits?
What's the problem with compost tea if it's made with accepted, allowed
materials?

There can be problems with inappropriate or poor use of ct, naturally, but
we have a handle on that and appropriate conditions can be specified - for
instance: I think we could live with using plant composts only for certified
ct, for a
while, and no molasses is ok, for a while, and E.coli tests are affordable,
if necessary, for a while... Plant compost only -or- E.coli testing is an
acceptable tradeoff, I'd think.

A range of natural materials are able to suppress pathogens in compost teas,
also: garlic oil, onion oil, orange oil, citric oils, cinnamon, and oregano
are among them. ...What's the real USDA problem here...? All of these
materials are organically allowed, hmm?

If USDA expects the NOSB CTTF to arrive at finality on compost teas soon, a
dubious objective, as is zero pathogens in compost - nature, sun, temp and
air in time deal with them much better than we can, though we can mange with
these powers - then these research questions and what conditions are key
considerations, and USDA needs to spend some ergs and bucks to make
inquiries happen. Where's the beef, bubbas?

What are USDA expectations? We can make good compost teas, no doubt. I
doubt they can be shown to be dangerous in the real world.

What is the problem besides what USDA has concocted in a few screwy, skewy,
selective and scurrilous lab tests? If I wanted to I could make bad compost
tea, too.

Why have they not included or reflected the experience of millions of
sensible people over a couple thousand years? How much more proof of
benefit is needed?

Why did USDA convert NOSB's conditional approval recommendation in April
2002 to not acceptable in August?
USNOP is legally obliged to LISTEN to NOSB, not contradict or over-rule
them.

How is it that compost tea can't satisfy soil fertility standards but is
acceptable under the 120-day raw manure rule?

How is it that USDA seems to think compost teas are dangerous yet there's
never been a report of disease or damage caused by compost tea? (unlike big
meat ecoli, eh?)

Et cetera. Many more questions are possible and my hope here is you'll
bring your own reflections and concerns and relay them to responsible people
in this goshdarn government of ours.

We have two official and strong allies in this effort, and many persuadable
US Cong reps, I think. NOSB is one. I do believe they will support compost
tea when push comes to shove. The other is the US House Organic Caucus. If
your rep is in this group or you know someone on NOSB and you haven't asked
them why USDA/NOP isn't supporting compost teas, it's a good thing I'm not
close, as my voice and foot would be elevated at you.:-) Ask them!!

And if your US Rep is not supporting the organic caucus, why not?

Ted - have you asked Farr? Easy to do. Takes ten minutes.

Organic certifiers often support compost teas, too, so there is a third
possible allied group, not centralized - international, in fact. Since they
have legal standing to challenge USDA on NOP matters, I hope you'd ask them
if they've asked these
questions or pushed back on USNOP about compost teas, and if they haven't,
why not?

Sometimes you gotta use a forward hoe, hmm? Anybody got a valid USNOSB
email address yet?

-- Kirk



















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Received on Wed Dec 17 2003 - 19:41:34 EST

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