HR 7406

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IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

February 5, 2026

Mr. Newhouse introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture

A BILL

To amend the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 to provide producers with the option to confirm the absence of prohibited substances through testing, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the “Meeting Demand for Organic Produce Act”.

SEC. 2. OPTION TO CONFIRM THE ABSENCE OF PROHIBITED SUBSTANCES THROUGH TESTING.

(a) National Standards for Organic Production.—Section 2105 of the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6504) is amended—

(1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1)—

(A) by striking “shall”; and

(B) by striking “To be” and inserting the following:

“(a) In General.—To be”;

(2) in subsection (a) (as so designated)—

(A) in paragraph (1), by inserting “shall” before “have been”;

(B) in paragraph (2)—

(i) by striking “products; and” and inserting “product; or”;

(ii) by striking “livestock, not” and inserting the following: “livestock—

“(A) shall not”; and

(iii) by adding at the end the following:

“(B) shall be produced in soil or another growing medium that has been confirmed prior to the time of planting to contain no prohibited substances, including synthetic chemicals, through testing or other methods certified by the Secretary to verify the absence of prohibited substances in the growing medium; and”; and

(C) in paragraph (3), by inserting “shall” before “be produced”; and

(3) by adding at the end the following:

“(b) Guidelines and Criteria.—Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of the Meeting Demand for Organic Produce Act, the Secretary shall issue an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking to develop guidelines and criteria for approved verification methods described in subsection (a)(2)(B) to ensure accuracy and reliability with respect to the testing described in that subsection.”.

(b) Management of Wild Crops.—Section 2114(f) of the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 6513(f)) is amended—

(1) by redesignating paragraphs (1) through (4) as subparagraphs (A) through (D), respectively, and indenting appropriately;

(2) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) (as so redesignated), by striking “An organic” and inserting the following:

“(1) In general.—An organic”;

(3) in paragraph (1)(B) (as so redesignated)—

(A) by adding “or” after the semicolon at the end;

(B) by striking “include a 3 year” and inserting the following: “include—

“(i) a 3-year”; and

(C) by adding at the end the following:

“(ii) a certification that the soil or other growing medium of the area has been confirmed prior to the time of planting to contain no prohibited substances, including synthetic chemicals, through testing or other methods certified by the Secretary to verify the absence of prohibited substances in the growing medium;”; and

(4) by adding at the end the following:

“(2) Guidelines and criteria.—Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of the Meeting Demand for Organic Produce Act, the Secretary shall issue an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking to develop guidelines and criteria for approved verification methods described in paragraph (1)(B)(ii) to ensure accuracy and reliability with respect to the testing described in that paragraph.”. <all>