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2023
The Transition to
Organic Partnership
Program (TOPP)
Prepared for USDA Organic by AcresUSA., The Voice of Eco-Agriculture
www.ACRESUSA.com | 1
The Transition to Organic
Partnership Program (TOPP)
AN OVERVIEW OF AN EXCITING NEW
P R O G R A M T H AT W I L L H E L P U. S . FA R M E R S
TRANSITION TO CERTIFIED ORGANIC
hen Bryan O’Hara moved
onto his Connecticut
farm over two decades
ago, he gained an unexpected blessing
in the form of his neighbor, an older
man named Gilbert Risley. Risley had
been a vegetable grower in the 1950s
and 60s and remembered the old way
of farming before synthetic fertilizers,
herbicides and pesticides became
mainstream. “For years and years Risley was a great mentor,” O’Hara says.
“He started with horse-drawn equipment and understood cultural techniques from before the chemical period.” O’Hara was fortunate to have
such wise counsel right next door;
however, many organic farmers don’t
have access to mentors or to experienced farmers who have been through
W
2 | Copyright AcresUSA
the ups and downs of growing crops or
raising livestock organically, both from
a production perspective and as a
small business owner.
The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Transition to Organic
Partnership Program (TOPP) is helping to change this narrative. Last fall,
USDA announced an investment of up
to $300 million to launch the Organic
Transition Initiative (OTI), a comprehensive suite of programs to support
farmers transitioning to organic production. This initiative delivers wraparound assistance including farmer-to-farmer mentoring and help with
“education and technical assistance
on agronomy, certification, extension,
conservation planning, business development regulations, and marketing.”
TOPP is a key component of OTI and
specifically invests up to $100 million
through cooperative agreements with
nonprofit partner organizations to administer the program. TOPP helps aspiring and transitioning organic farmers by pairing them with experienced
farmers and mentors.
In addition to TOPP, the mentoring
arm of OTI, USDA will support new
and transitioning organic farmers
with financial and technical assistance
through the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and the Risk
Management Agency (RMA). NRCS is
developing new standards for conservation practices for organic operations
and will be offering assistance — both
technical and financial — for producers who implement the standards.
RMA will help organic growers participate in crop insurance through its
new Transitional and Organic Grower
Assistance Program. The USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) also
just launched the Organic Market Development Program to help expand
the organic agricultural supply chain.
HOW TOPP WORKS
The USDA, AMS National Organic
Program has created partnership networks in six regions across the U.S.
with trusted local organizations to adPHOTO FROM CANVA
Transition to Organic
Partnership Program (TOPP)
TOPP is a network of organizations partnering to
support transitioning and existing organic farmers.
Visit USDA’s TOPP Webpage to:
Sign up to serve as a mentor
Tell us you want to transition to organic
Express interest in providing technical assistance
Find partners in your local TOPP region
www.ams.usda.gov/services/organic-certification/topp
www.ACRESUSA.com | 3
USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender
minister TOPP. The six regions are (1)
Mid-Atlantic/Northeast, (2) Southeast,
(3) Midwest, (4) Plains, (5) Northwest,
and (6) West/Southwest. Each regional team provides community-building,
mentoring and advice.
The partner organizations in the
six geographic regions are working to
connect new and transitioning farmers with mentors for at least one year
after initial organic certification. Mentors are paid to share their practical insights and advice (the exact payment
schedules are due to be released later
in 2023), and mentors can work with
more than one new farmer.
Partner organizations also offer
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community-building
opportunities
including technical assistance, workshops and field days. Topics covered
include organic production practices,
certification, conservation planning,
business development and marketing.
TOPP will also train crop advisors
and extension agents on the skills
they need to help the growing organic industry.
Early organic pioneers like Bryan
O’Hara survived through hard work
and, often, serendipitous relationships with mentors who were able to
help them learn how to grow crops
without chemical inputs. Those who
made it did so through a combination
of determination and good fortune.
Thanks to USDA’s new TOPP initiative,
more new and transitioning organic
farmers can succeed.
For anyone interested in additional information on TOPP, please visit:
www.ams.usda.gov/services/organic-certification/topp
Supported through the United States Department of
Agriculture (USDA) Transition to Organic Partnership
Program (TOPP). TOPP is a program of the USDA Organic Transition Initiative and is administered by the
USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) National
Organic Program (NOP). This article was written by
AcresUSA., in coordination with the Organic Crop Improvement Association (OCIA). OCIA is the TOPP lead
for the Plains Region.
PHOTO FROM CANVA