Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) offered the amendment to repeal the anti-organic rider. Leahy’s bipartisan amendment was cosponsored by 51 other senators, and the leading Republican cosponsor of the Leahy Amendment was Sen. Larry Craig (R-Idaho). It is identical to the Organic Restoration Act (S.457), introduced by Leahy and Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), which currently has 69 Senate cosponsors (including Leahy, the chief sponsor).

"The swift and strong groundswell of opposition to that rider has been an eye-opener for many in Washington," said Leahy. "Getting the organic standards right was a long and difficult process, but it was a turning point for the industry. This fight to keep the standards strong is another watershed moment for organic agriculture. It shows that organic producers and consumers want the organic label to mean what it says."

Leahy is the "father" of the national organic standards and labeling program and the author of the legislation that chartered the program in 1990.

The earlier rider that the amendment would repeal was intended to allow producers to label their meat and dairy products "organic" even though they do not meet USDA’s strict criteria, including that the animals be fed organically grown feed, if USDA finds that organic feed is too expensive or hard to find. The rider was intended to benefit one Georgia producer, but it is written broadly enough that it essentially creates a loophole for any livestock producer in the country to get around the organic feed requirement.

"We need to send a message to all producers that if you want the economic rewards of selling organic products, you must follow the standards that others are following," said Leahy. "If a few beef, poultry, pork and dairy producers are able to label their products ‘organic’ without using organic feed, which is one of the primary inputs, then what exactly is organic about their products? The anti-organic rider is particularly galling because so many producers have already made the commitment to organic production. For most, this is a huge financial commitment, and the rider has put everyone in a legal limbo."

The supplemental appropriations bill that includes the Leahy Amendment was passed by the Senate Thursday night and now goes to a conference committee next week where negotiators will reconcile different versions of the bill passed by the House and the Senate. The House-passed bill does not include language similar to the Leahy provision. Counterpart legislation to repeal the rider has been introduced as a bill in the House by Rep. Sam Farr (D-Calif.) and Rep. Ron Kind (D-Wisc.) and others.