Investment in research and innovation is critical for continued growth in the organic sector. Generally, private and public research play complementary roles, with the private sector concentrating on areas with commercial application and public research focusing on natural resources, human nutrition, and areas of potential societal benefits. Much of the industry research on organic agriculture has concentrated on biological pest control products, such as natural enemies or botanical extracts, and development of new food products. Given the environmental benefits of organic agriculture, public research is extensive. Research on production, breeding, processing, and marketing of commodities can help producers transition into organic agriculture by reducing uncertainties.

In a 1980 report assessing the nature and activity of organic agriculture, USDA recognized the lack of necessary information available to organic and transitioning farms, noting limited vital statistics (such as the number of farms and geographic distribution) and Government- and university-funded research. In 1995, only 0.1 percent of USDA research projects were explicitly related to organic farming. The 1998 Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act (1998 Farm Act) began to address the information gap by setting priorities on facilitating organic development and improvement, evaluating its economic benefits, and exploring international trade opportunities.

The 1998 Farm Act created the Organic Transitions Program (ORG) as a competitive grants program under USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) to support research on the competitiveness of organic producers and on overcoming barriers to transition. The 2002 Farm Act launched the NIFA Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative (OREI), a competitive grants program intended to make it easier for producers to grow and market organic products. Initial priorities for OREI included determining desirable traits of organic commodities, identifying constraints for expansion, and conducting on-farm research. The 2008 Farm Act added priorities on studying the relationship between organic systems and conservation, organic systems and environmental outcomes, and development of new seed varieties.

ORG originally was funded at $500,000 annually, although its funding is not included in the Farm Bill and is typically lower than that of NIFA’s OREI program. The initial mandatory spending authorization for OREI was set at $3 million a year but has grown throughout the decades and is now set at $50 million a year. Grant payments are always less than the authorized amount because of automatic Federal spending reductions and costs incurred by the program such as those for administrative needs. In 2020, the number of proposals received since the programs began exceeded 1,700, but only 356 were funded.

OREI does not offer direct support to farmers but provides indirect benefits through research and by imparting knowledge. Other USDA agencies have programs directly assisting organic producers. Since 2008, the Farm Acts have included provisions to reduce obstacles organic farmers face in trying to access USDA farm assistance programs. Programs have become more tailored to organic production, and USDA has increased its outreach to organic producers. USDA recently created the Organic Transition Initiative (OTI) with $300 million to provide comprehensive support for farmers transitioning to organic production and to support established organic producers. OTI helps growers overcome barriers to transition, including a lack of region-specific and technical knowledge, price and yield risk, and market access.

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