The United States Department of Agriculture published new organic livestock and poultry production standards. The goal of clearer standards is to increase consistency in animal welfare practices.
The updated standards provide more details for indoor and outdoor living conditions, poultry stocking densities, preventative health care, physical alterations, euthanasia, transport, handling and slaughter.
The National Organic Program will implement and enforce compliance with these standards.
When will the new standards take effect?
Organic-certified operations must comply with the new standards by Jan. 12, 2025.
Poultry operations certified before Jan. 2, 2025, do not need to comply with the following standards until Jan. 12, 2029:
- Broiler indoor and outdoor stocking density requirements and outdoor space requirements.
- Layer outdoor space requirements.
- Poultry exit area requirements.
Any operations certified after Jan. 12, 2025, must comply with all requirements.
Standards for all livestock
General care and production
Required
- Species suitable to site conditions.
- Appropriate housing.
- Daily ration meets nutritional requirements.
Health monitoring and recording
Required
- Identify sick and injured animals.
- Record treatment in health records of sick and injured animals.
- Actively monitor lameness.
- Timely and appropriate lameness treatment and mitigation.
Plan for preventing internal parasites
Required
- Pasture management.
- Fecal monitoring.
- Outbreak emergency plan.
Surgical procedures
Required
- Minimize pain, stress and suffering.
Euthanasia
Required
- Maintain written plans for euthanasia.
- Ensure animals are dead.
- Nonorganic methods in an emergency when directed by a government agency.
- Use “American Veterinary Medical Association Guidelines for the Euthanasia of Animals.”
Allowed or recommended
- Euthanasia when treatments on and off the National list cannot heal animals.
Prohibited
- Euthanasia via suffocation, manual blunt force trauma, or neck crushing equipment.
Mammalian and non-avian livestock living conditions
Required
- Shelter provides sufficient space to lie down, stand up, fully stretch limbs and express normal behavior.
- Shelter is appropriate for the species.
- Shelter protects from extreme weather.
- Shelter reduces the potential for injury.
Limiting freedom of movement exceptions (non-avian livestock)
Allowed or recommended
- Milking.
- Feeding.
- Herd checks.
- Stalls for part of the day.
Indoor bedding and resting space (non-avian livestock)
Required
- Large and comfortable.
- Livestock is clean, dry and free of lesions.
Outdoor access
Required
- Unencumbered year-round outdoor access.
- If access to soil, vegetation must be maintained.
- Pasture access during grazing season for ruminants.
Temporary confinement exemptions (non-avian livestock)
Allowed or recommended
- During time required for natural or artificial breeding.
- Confinement at nonorganic certified facilities for youth livestock project.
Prohibited
- For observing estrus.
Transport and slaughter
Required
- Organic animals are identified clearly.
Prohibited
- Crippled or non-ambulatory animals.
Mode of transportation
Required
- Seasonally appropriate ventilation.
- Bedding for trailer floors and holding pens.
- Animals clean dry and comfortable.
- Transportation operation emergency plans.
Slaughter (non-avian livestock)
Required
- Certifying agents have the authority to review records on humane handling and slaughter and required corrective actions.
- Slaughter facilities are in full compliance with the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act regulated by the Food Safety and Inspection Service.
- Exotic animals are handled with the same humane standards as livestock.
Species-specific standards
|
Physical alterations
Required
- Minimize stress and pain during and after.
- Performed by capable individuals.
Allowed or recommended
- For identification or safety.
- At a young age.
Prohibited
- Tail docking.
- Wattling.
- Face-branding.
National list of allowed and prohibited substances
Required
- Treating injured, diseased, or sick animals to minimize pain and suffering.
- With allowed substances on National list.
- With substances not on National list if allowed substances are insufficient.
Allowed or recommended
- Anesthetics, analgesics and sedatives for surgical procedures.
- Synthetic medications to treat sickness when preventative practices or veterinary biologics fail.
- Parasiticides for breeder stock.
- Parasiticides for dairy animals.
- Milk from treated cow fed to organic calves during withdrawal period.
Prohibited
- Hormones for growth promotion, production or reproduction.
Dairy youngstock individual housing
Required
- Room to turn around, lie down, stretch out while lying, get up, rest and groom themselves.
- See, smell and hear other animals.
Allowed or recommended
- Individually housed until weaning.
Physical alterations
Required
- Minimizing stress and pain during and after.
- Performed by capable individuals.
Allowed or recommended
- For identification or safety.
- At a young age.
Prohibited
- Debeaking.
- Desnooding.
- Caponization.
- Dubbing.
- Toe clipping unless done with infrared at the hatchery.
- Beak clipping after 10 days old.
Induced molting
Prohibited
- Feed restriction.
- Severe light manipulation.
- Other management practices.
National list of allowed and prohibited substances
Required
- Treat injured, diseased or sick animals to minimize pain and suffering.
- With allowed substances on the National list.
- With substances not on the National list if allowed substances are insufficient.
Allowed or recommended
- Anesthetics, analgesics, and sedatives for surgical procedures.
- Synthetic medications to treat sickness when preventative practices or veterinary biologics fail.
- Parasiticides for breeder stock.
Prohibited
- Hormones for growth promotion, production, or reproduction.
Living conditions
Required
- Accommodate wellbeing and natural behavior.
- Year-round access to:
- Outdoors.
- Soil.
- Shade.
- Shelter.
- Exercise areas.
- Fresh air.
- Direct sunlight.
- Clean drinking water.
- Materials for dust bathing.
- Adequate space to escape aggressive behaviors.
Indoor space
Required
- Space for all birds to move freely.
- Space to:
- Stretch both wings at the same time.
- Stand normally.
- Engage in natural behaviors: dust bathing, scratching, perching.
- 1 square foot of indoor space for every three pounds of bird or 2.2 square feet of indoor space per bird.
- Indoor square footage is all flat areas in the house.
Allowed or recommended
- Indoor space includes enclosed porches and lean-tos if the birds always have access to them.
Prohibited
- Cages.
- Including nest boxes/areas as indoor space.
Chicken layer perches
Required
- 6 inches of perch per bird.
- All layers must be able to perch at the same time.
- 3.3 inches per bird in an aviary house.
Prohibited
- Use of slatted flooring as perch space.
Shelter flooring
Required
- Static shelter litter or bedding is required for scratching and dust bathing.
- At least 15 percent solid flooring in static shelter.
Allowed or recommended
- Mobile housing may have 100% slatted or mesh flooring.
- Requirements for scratching and dust bathing are met with areas outside mobile housing.
Shelter exit areas
Required
- 1 foot of linear exit area space for every 360 birds.
- Standard operating procedures describe how all birds can access the outdoors.
- Prevent stray poultry, wild birds, cats, rodents and other animals from entering poultry houses.
Ammonia levels
Required
- Monitor ammonia levels.
- At 20 ppm ammonia producers implement additional practices.
Prohibited
- Ammonia levels exceeding 25 ppm.
Artificial lighting for layers and fully-feathered birds
Required
- 8 continuous hours or more of darkness per day.
- Light lowered gradually for hens to settle for the night.
Prohibited
- More than 16 continuous hours of artificial light per day.
- Manipulation of the light spectrum.
Outdoor space
Required
- Daily outdoor access.
- At least 75% soil with vegetation cover.
- Vegetation is maintained to prevent pests.
- Shade.
- Layers
- 1 square foot for every 2.25 pounds of bird or.
- 3 square feet per layer.
- Pullets
- 1 square foot for every 3 pounds of bird or.
- 1.7 square feet per pullet.
- Broilers
- 1 square foot for every 5 pounds of bird or.
- 2 square feet per broiler.
Temporary confinement
Required
- Document confinement: reason, duration, flocks.
Allowed or recommended
- During inclement weather.
- For broilers up to 4 weeks of age.
- For pullets up to 16 weeks of age.
- During risk to soil or water quality.
- To prevent or treat illness and injuries.
- For sorting, shipping or poultry sales.
- To train pullets to nest boxes (max 5 weeks).
- For youth exhibitions.
Slaughter
Required
- Birds are stunned before bleeding if hung or shackled on a chain or automated slaughter system. This standard does not apply to religious slaughter.
- Birds are irreversibly insensible before entering a scalding tank.
Prohibited
- Hanging, carrying or shackling any lame birds by their legs.
Physical alterations
Required
- Minimizing stress and pain during and after.
- Performed by capable individuals.
Allowed or recommended
- For identification or safety.
- At a young age.
Prohibited
- Tail docking (shorter than the distal end of the caudal fold).
- Mulesing.
National list of allowed and prohibited substances
Required
- Treat injured, diseased or sick animals to minimize pain and suffering.
- With allowed substances on the National list.
- With substances not on the National list if allowed substances are insufficient.
Allowed or recommended
- Anesthetics, analgesics, and sedatives for surgical procedures.
- Synthetic medications to treat sickness when preventative practices or veterinary biologics fail.
- Parasiticides for breeder stock, dairy animals, and fiber-bearing animals.
Prohibited
- Hormones for growth promotion, production, or reproduction.
Physical alterations
Required
- Minimizing stress and pain during and after.
- Performed by capable individuals.
- Identify sick and injured piglets.
Allowed or recommended
- For identification or safety.
- At a young age.
Prohibited
- Needle teeth clipping piglets.
- Tail docking piglets.
You can perform these practices in response to documented harm and failure of alternative methods.
National list of allowed and prohibited substances
Required
- Treating injured diseased or sick animals to minimize pain and suffering.
- With allowed substances on the National list.
- With substances not on the National list if allowed substances are insufficient.
Allowed or recommended
- Anesthetics, analgesics, and sedatives for surgical procedures.
- Synthetic medications to treat sickness when preventative practices or veterinary biologics fail.
- Parasiticides for breeder stock.
Prohibited
- Hormones for growth promotion, production or reproduction.
Swine housing
Required
- Group housing.
- Rooting materials at all times.
Allowed or recommended
- Individual housing for sows at farrowing and suckling.
- Individual boar housing.
- Individual housing following multiple aggression events.
- Individual housing for the recovery from illness.
- Access to soil or vegetation.
Prohibited
- Flat decks or piglet cages.
- Gestation and farrowing crates.
Reviewed in 2024