The Organic Trade Association's lawsuit against the Department of Agriculture—for withdrawing a regulation shortly before it was to take effect—can go ahead. The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled Feb. 27 that the group has legal standing to challenge the rollback of an Obama-era rulemaking. The agency withdrew the final Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices rule in March 2018 before the May effective date.

"The court has recognized the harm to organic producers, to organic businesses, and to the integrity of the Organic seal that the USDA's arbitrary and capricious stance against this important organic standard has already had, and the potential for even greater damage," Laura Batcha, OTA's CEO and executive director, said in a statement. "Our case will now advance. We are confident our case is strong and we look forward to winning this legal battle to uphold organic standards."

Among other arguments, the association disagrees with the Agriculture Department's position that the Organic Food and Production Act does not give the National Organic Program the authority to regulate animal welfare, which according to OTA is a new and "radically different" stance from that of previous administrations since the program began.

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