WASHINGTON, July 22, 2016 – Hydroponic growing systems that do not use soil should nonetheless be considered for organic certification if they can achieve “equivalent soil functions,” a new report ...

WASHINGTON, April 12, 2017 - Can hydroponics – fruit and vegetable growing systems that don’t use soil – be certified as organic farming? The Agriculture Department’s answer is likely coming soon.

The latest salvo in the battle between traditional organic farmers — who grow in nutrient-rich soil — and soil-free hydroponic operators centers on a prohibited weed-fighting chemical. Soil farmers ...

Can food be organic even if it’s not grown in soil? Many hydroponic growers in the U.S. want access to the $40 billion organic market, but a board that advises the U.S. Agriculture Department on ...

(Beyond Pesticides, July 13, 2020) Soil is central to organic production. Therefore, hydroponic operations should not be considered eligible for organic certification, and the National Organic Program ...

STOWE - Some organic crop farmers don’t want crops raised sans soil in hydroponic greenhouses to carry the “organic” label, and to make their point, they dumped a pile of compost in a parking lot ...

Dave Chapman, an organic tomato farmer in East Thetford, Vt, stands with his team of oxen in the early 1980s. Since 1984, Dave Chapman has been growing organic tomatoes at his Vermont-based Long Wind ...

If a fruit or vegetable isn't grown in dirt, can it be organic? That is the question roiling the world of organic farming, and the answer could redefine what it means to farm organically. At issue is ...

Many organic tomatoes or peppers are grown in greenhouses, where they get nutrients from water. Critics say that violates the spirit of "organic."... Hydroponic Veggies Are Taking Over Organic, And A ...

Some fresh produce from hydroponic growers has been approved for and is being sold under USDA’s organic seal, but farmers who grow their organic crops in the soil don’t like the competition. The ...