An organic farming and business industry coalition is asking USDA not to establish a checkoff for organic products. The No Organic Check off Coalition’s Kate Mendenhall says the groups she represents wants more control over what they produce and doesn’t think having a checkoff is the right way to achieve that.

She says her coalition wants USDA to help farmers transition to organic production, rather than developing a checkoff which will hurt their efforts in the long run.

Mendenhall says it costs enough for producers to move from conventional to organic production and adding a checkoff just compounds that.

Mendenhall says there is a lack of industry support for an organic checkoff and that’s why her group has written to USDA opposing those efforts.