​MOSA Certification for Stellar Certified Operations

BY MOSA Certified Organic | Jul 02, 2018

MOSA Certification for Stellar Certified Operations

Stellar Certification Services, a branch of Demeter Association, Inc., has announced it will cease USDA NOP Certification Services as of July 31, 2018. Demeter USA will continue to certify Biodynamic producers.

Stellar Certified Operations will have until Sept. 30, 2018 to apply for certification with a new accredited organic certification agency. MOSA Certified Organic is prepared to assist Stellar Clients with this application process, and we are committed to making this transition easy, timely, and cost effective. (some geographic restrictions may apply)

MOSA Certified Organic is a well-respected nonprofit certification agency that was founded in 1999, before the USDA National Organic Standards were yet developed. We certify over 2000 farm, processor, distributor, and retail clients in 22 states and are well-versed in a wide diversity of farm and business models. We have the experience you require to succeed in a competitive and growing marketplace. We are your partner in organic success.

Why Choose MOSA Certified Organic?

  • We will waive your 2018 certification fee. That’s correct- you will pay $0 for certification, and will only pay your inspection fee for 2018. We consider this mid-year announcement, and condensed timeline for choosing a new certification agency an economic hardship for Stellar clients, and have waived this fee to ease your transition.

  • In 2019, you will pay certification fees based upon your 2018 gross organic sales (producers) or adjusted gross organic sales (handlers). As a non-profit agency, MOSA is known for our fair and transparent fee schedules. We don’t hide your true costs behind additional fees.

  • Your label transition will be easy. We recognize that updating label inventory is a significant expense. Until recently, the rules mandated that following a change in certifiers, an operation had to update their labels within 90 days. The USDA NOP has recently confirmed that “to facilitate an operation’s change in certifiers when a certifier is no longer accredited, NOP is waiving the 90 day constraint in NOP 2604, and certifiers may choose to allow the use up of existing supplies of labels identifying the prior certifier.”

  • No corporate agenda. MOSA has no stockholders, is non-profit, and is guided by an independent Board of Directors made up of experienced farmers, educators, and business people from the organic industry.

  • We know farming. MOSA certifies more organic livestock clients than any other certification agency. We also certify a huge number of cropping enterprises, including vineyards, orchards, field crops, market gardens, truck farms, mushrooms, wild crops, maple syrup and many more.

  • We know food processing and manufacturing. MOSA certifies nearly 300 organic handling operations including processors, distributors, and retailers that includes such recognized companies as Sno Pac, Harris Teeter, Gedney Foods, Kickapoo Coffee, Koval Distillery, Land ‘O Lakes, Standard Process, and Richelieu Foods.

  • An easy, online application process. Through MyMOSA, you can complete the entire application process online. You can also access and update your file at any time through this cloud-based service. Still prefer paper? No problem, over half of our clients still use paper, so we make this easy too.

How long do I have to find a new certifier?


You have until September 30, 2018 to choose and submit an application to a new certifier. You must inform the USDA National Organic Program (NOP) (AIAInbox@ams.usda.gov) of the name of your new certifier and the date your application was submitted by Sept. 30, 2018. When you apply with MOSA, we will work with you on a reasonable timeline for completing your transfer. If you choose to discontinue USDA Organic Certification, you must notify the NOP by the same date of Sept. 30, 2018.

Failure to notify the NOP of your new application, or of your intent to discontinue certification, will result in a noncompliance, which may lead to loss of your organic certification.

How do I get started with MOSA?

Our experienced staff is ready to help with your questions, and to get you started with the application process. Call us at (608) 637-2526, M-F, 8:30-4:30 Central, or email us at mosa@mosaorganic.org.

We look forward to working with you!

MOSA Certified Organic

MOSA promotes organic integrity through practical, reliable, and friendly certification services.