New Program Would Certify Organic Marijuana in California

In an effort to allow cannabis growers to prove they are using organic growing standards, thus allowing them to use the term organic in their marketing, the state of California has proposed a new program. As reported by Marijuana Business Daily, the program could help growers improve their bottom lines by charging a premium for certified organic cannabis, grown with approved nutrients and pest avoidance methods.

Currently, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) does not allow cannabis growers to claim their product is organic. The current certification program under the federal agency is not available to marijuana growers, due to weed’s illegality at the federal level. The new program proposed and being coordinated by the California Department of Food and Agriculture would be comparable to the federal USDA organic certification program for other products and would give qualified growers the ability to use the term “organic” in their marketing.