REMINDER: SOE Regulation Requirements

The SOE regulation was passed in March of 2023, but still caught many members of the beverage alcohol community by surprise, as the regulation requires all importers of organic product to be certified by a USDA accredited certifier. The USDA outlines the necessity of controls on imports due to fraudulent activity in the organic trade business. Any party acting as an importer of record for organic product must get certified. Exempted parties include customs brokers, freight forwarders, and warehouses that only receive and store sealed product. Your organic producer(s) will have to follow the guidelines as well, working with certifiers approved by the USDA and their certifiers will produce the required NOP (National Organic Program) certificates through the electronic Organic Integrity Database. If you have not started the process to get certified, take action today!

USDA SOE Fact Sheet