Regenerative Organic Certified™: What it is and Why it’s Gaining Attention with Elizabeth Whitlow

This presentation will introduce Regenerative Organic Certified™, a new label that encompasses soil health, animal welfare, and social fairness. Elizabeth will cover the goals of regenerative organic agriculture and the certification program, which aims to connect farmers with brands and consumers interested in paying a premium for regenerative organic products that help mitigate climate change. She will also address the Regenerative Organic Alliance’s plans to launch a Farmer Cost-Share Program in 2021 and efforts to make the certification accessible to farmers at all scales.

This presentation was part of OAK's 10th Annual Organic Farming Conference on January 26-30, 2021.

Regenerating the living crust of the Earth has been Elizabeth Whitlow’s mission since she was first exposed in the 1990s to the harmful practices of industrial agriculture and the power of building thriving food systems. Thus, began the long journey of examining the deeper systemic policies of agriculture and advocating for programs that reward holistic farmers. Now, as the Executive Director of the Regenerative Organic Alliance, Elizabeth is overseeing the launch of a revolutionary certification program, Regenerative Organic Certified. The term “regenerative” risks becoming the next buzzword as it is adopted by large chemical ag. Elizabeth is leading the charge to ensure that regenerative is intrinsically linked to organic. Regenerative organic agriculture is farming in a way that heals our precious topsoil, draws carbon down, creates thriving ecosystems and equity for those who live and depend on Earth. Above all, her greatest honor is to serve a planet that is in tremendous need of each and every one of us. “In the 37 seconds it may have taken to read this brief bio, the Earth has lost the equivalent of 18 soccer fields of living topsoil. The solutions to our modern-day ecological crises lies right beneath our feet.”