Organic feed that is really actually organic????

[chickengirl72]

I've been seeing news stories about organic fraud. ie: http://www.organicauthority.com/fra...of-organic-soybeans-shown-to-be-conventional/ or https://www.washingtonpost.com/busi...7c8a68c1a66_story.html?utm_term=.efbf45d7cd2a or if you check the recent news, there are lots of stories about this.

anyways, are there any feed companies that do independent testing (bonus points if they're available in Canada) to ensure that the feed is actually organic and not fraudulent? and are there any companies that test their organics for glyphosate residue? according to the Canadian food inspection agency, glyphosate is showing up on a lot of 'certified organic' grains, etc.

are there any legume or grain crops that are non-gmo by default and that don't have glyphosate sprayed on them as a desiccant before harvest that could be used to make my own feed? i know that's a loaded question! the industry standard seems to be to use roundup as a desiccant, across the board.

you know how the ewg releases a list of the dirty dozen and clean 15 for fruits and veggies every year, is there anything like that for grains/legumes/seeds? and if so, are there recipes that use the clean grains etc to make a suitable diy chicken feed?

when i heard about olive oil and honey fraud we stopped buying olive oil and now we keep our own bees. i have no idea how to feed our chickens without buying feed, especially when we're growing out meaties. we don't have enough land to grow our own grains for them. i have friends who buy the non-gmo or organic feed, cross their fingers and hope they're getting what they pay for, and so far, that's what i've been doing.

i'm wondering if anyone else has looked into this issue and has figured out a better solution?

 

[Molpet]

well I buy from a co-op of organic farmers and hope for the best...

but you do make me think and all I found was this:

Are products bearing the Non-GMO Project Verified seal “GMO Free”?
Unfortunately, “GMO Free” and similar claims are not legally or scientifically defensible due to limitations of testing methodology. In addition, the risk of contamination to seeds, crops, ingredients and products is too high to reliably claim that a product is “GMO Free.” The Project’s claim offers a true statement acknowledging the reality of contamination risk, but assuring the shopper that the product in question is in compliance with the Project’s rigorous standard. While the Non-GMO Project Verified seal is not a “GMO free” claim, it is trustworthy, defensible, transparent, and North America’s only independent verification for products made according to best practices for GMO avoidance. from: https://www.nongmoproject.org/product-verification/verification-faqs/

 

[chickengeorgeto]

In the Northern Plains it is common for Round-up to be sprayed on mature grain crops to speedup harvest. This includes (as far as I've been told) organic crops.

According to USDA, SCS, & the FDA using Round-Up or some other glyphosate products on Organic crops is perfectly acceptable as long as there is the threat of a crop failure without the glyphosate or other chemical application. An early frost is an acceptable risk of a total crop failure.

 

[Molpet]

In the Northern Plains it is common for Round-up to be sprayed on mature grain crops to speedup harvest. This includes (as far as I've been told) organic crops.

According to USDA, SCS, & the FDA using Round-Up or some other glyphosate products on Organic crops is perfectly acceptable as long as there is the threat of a crop failure without the glyphosate or other chemical application. An early frost is an acceptable risk of a total crop failure.

but they are not supposed to sell it as organic:
§205.672 Emergency pest or disease treatment.
When a prohibited substance is applied to a certified operation due to a Federal or State emergency pest or disease treatment program and the certified operation otherwise meets the requirements of this part, the certification status of the operation shall not be affected as a result of the application of the prohibited substance: Provided, That:

(a) Any harvested crop or plant part to be harvested that has contact with a prohibited substance applied as the result of a Federal or State emergency pest or disease treatment program cannot be sold, labeled, or represented as organically produced; and

(b) Any livestock that are treated with a prohibited substance applied as the result of a Federal or State emergency pest or disease treatment program or product derived from such treated livestock cannot be sold, labeled, or represented as organically produced: Except, That:

(1) Milk or milk products may be sold, labeled, or represented as organically produced beginning 12 months following the last date that the dairy animal was treated with the prohibited substance; and

(2) The offspring of gestating mammalian breeder stock treated with a prohibited substance may be considered organic: Provided, That, the breeder stock was not in the last third of gestation on the date that the breeder stock was treated with the prohibited substance.
from: https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/retrie...rue&n=pt7.3.205&r=PART&ty=HTML#se7.3.205_1101

 

[Leahs Mom]

I'm in Northern Indiana and I make my own feed. I purchase my feed grains from the local feed mill (all organic with the exception of the BOSS). In that setting, many of the sources for the grains are local farmers with known farms and habits.

For our food items, I try to buy as many of my organic items as I can from local farms that I know. Some of them aren't certified, some are. The ones that aren't are using true organic standards and ore often better than the ones that are doing the "letter of the law".

We purchase 100% grass fed beef from a local farm that raises a few low-line for butcher. This is a no chemical-input farm. Purchase our milk from a grass farm that practices organic standards, with the dairy and beef herd out on grass during the season. Neither of them are certified but good practices.

For me, it's the amount of chemical input that I'm avoiding. Chemical fertilizers, chemical herbicides, chemical pesticides. For me, that has a lot to do with why I raise my own and garden my own in the first place.

 

[Chickenrunlady]

I've been seeing news stories about organic fraud. ie: http://www.organicauthority.com/fra...of-organic-soybeans-shown-to-be-conventional/ or https://www.washingtonpost.com/busi...7c8a68c1a66_story.html?utm_term=.efbf45d7cd2a or if you check the recent news, there are lots of stories about this.

anyways, are there any feed companies that do independent testing (bonus points if they're available in Canada) to ensure that the feed is actually organic and not fraudulent? and are there any companies that test their organics for glyphosate residue? according to the Canadian food inspection agency, glyphosate is showing up on a lot of 'certified organic' grains, etc.

are there any legume or grain crops that are non-gmo by default and that don't have glyphosate sprayed on them as a desiccant before harvest that could be used to make my own feed? i know that's a loaded question! the industry standard seems to be to use roundup as a desiccant, across the board.

you know how the ewg releases a list of the dirty dozen and clean 15 for fruits and veggies every year, is there anything like that for grains/legumes/seeds? and if so, are there recipes that use the clean grains etc to make a suitable diy chicken feed?

when i heard about olive oil and honey fraud we stopped buying olive oil and now we keep our own bees. i have no idea how to feed our chickens without buying feed, especially when we're growing out meaties. we don't have enough land to grow our own grains for them. i have friends who buy the non-gmo or organic feed, cross their fingers and hope they're getting what they pay for, and so far, that's what i've been doing.

i'm wondering if anyone else has looked into this issue and has figured out a better solution?

Homestead Organics located outside of Ottawa, Ontario. I would look into them.

 

[Chickenrunlady]

http://www.homesteadorganics.ca/default_fr.aspx

 

[chickengirl72]

thanks for the input everybody. in the area that i live, there are very few grain farms, most people just grow hay. we don't really have the right climate here for grains. i'm asking around to see if anyone is growing fodder crops for their own animals. i had a look at the homestead organics website and i can't see anything about testing for chemical residue. i did see that they're using beet pulp and most beets are grown on the prairies, so that means they're importing from far away from their mill. our local mill does the same thing--they buy locally when they can, but will even import from the states if they need to. that gives a higher likelihood that the grains, etc that make it into the feed are fraudulent, etc.

Leah's mom~~we have some serious health issues in my family and that's why we're trying to eat as clean as possible too. we bought our property so that we could raise our own food as much as possible. which recipe do you use to make up your feed?

sorry it's been so long since i posted on this thread, we've had a very wet, cold spring and finally got some weather that was good enough to put the garden in, so i haven't been online much lately.

 

[dmroth1102]

As a new owner of a small farmette and very new to raising chickens, I too have been on the hunt for GMO/organic feed--especially corn. I came across this website that has proven helpful for me.

http://www.nongmosourcebook.com/non-gmosourcebook/us_suppliers.php

 

[nana h]

As a new owner of a small farmette and very new to raising chickens, I too have been on the hunt for GMO/organic feed--especially corn. I came across this website that has proven helpful for me.

http://www.nongmosourcebook.com/non-gmosourcebook/us_suppliers.php

Oh wow! So glad you posted this, turns out there is an organic feed supplier not far from me. Never would have dreamed it, here in chemical worshipping big ag territory!