On Tuesday, August 5, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s Agriculture Marketing Service (AMS) will hold a webinar about the previously announced Grass-Fed Program for Small and Very Small (SVS) Producers.  The webinar will be held from 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM Eastern Time.  During the webinar AMS will provide an overview of the USDA Grass Fed program, the program website, and detailed information about the application and evaluation processes for gaining approval for livestock to the Grass Fed Standard.

The new certification option allows small operations marketing 49 cattle or less each year to certify their product as consistent with the strict grass fed label claim through a less costly application process than is the case under the regular Process Verified Program (PVP).   AMS plans to add sheep to the program this summer.  The program is designed to create more economic opportunities for small-scale, niche market livestock producers, as it provides a verification tool for them to certify that animals meet the requirements of the grass-fed marketing claim standard, making them eligible to have their products marketed as “USDA Certified Grass Fed Beef.”

Producers certified under the new option will receive certificates to market cattle to processing facilities as USDA grass-fed, but still will not be allowed to use the USDA PVP grass-fed seal.  The standard requires that ruminant animals be fed only grass and forage, with the exception of milk consumed prior to weaning.  Animals certified under this program cannot be fed grain or grain byproducts and must have continuous access to pasture during the growing season.

Webinar Details

The Grass- Fed webinar will be listen only and should be attended using a phone and a computer.  Participants can sent a chat to the presenter using the computer during the webinar.  A link with the webinar recording will be posted on the AMS Quality Assessment Division (QAD)’s website for those who wish to listen in at a later date.  Participants are encouraged to send questions ahead of time to be answered during the webinar, and those questions should be emailed to Jennifer.Turpin@ams.usda.gov.

Date: Tuesday, August 5, 2014

Time: 11:00 AM- 12:00 PM Eastern Time

Dial in by Phone: 866.740.1260, access code 72020000

Meeting URL: http://www.readytalk.com – On the left side of the screen enter participant access code: 72020000.

Computer compatibility: To test your computer for compatibility prior to the conference visit http://test.readytalk.com/?host=readytalk

More information on the Grassfed Program is available here.

Watch a recording of the webinar here.