What is OMRI Listing? Why should backyard gardeners care if a product is OMRI Listed or not?
OMRI (Organic Materials Review Institute) is a non profit organization dedicated to supporting organic integrity. This includes the integrity of organic products used by backyard food gardeners.
The organization provides a very helpful service by creating a list of products that are safe for organic gardening. Products on the list proudly carry the designation “OMRI Listed.”
If an organic seed starting mix or an organic fertilizer, for example, is OMRI Listed, you can rest easy knowing that it is safe for your organic garden.
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Another way to look at this is that OMRI Listed products do not bring anything to your garden that you don’t want.
Let’s take a sec to get the legal words out of the way. This article may contain affiliate links. That means if you click and buy from my partners, I will make a tiny amount of money at no cost to you. This in no way affects my recommendations.
OMRI reviews products to determine if they are in compliance with organic standards from one or more of three standards:
- USDA National Organic Program
- Canada Organic Regime
- Mexican Organic Products Law
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OMRI Listed garden products
There are five OMRI Listed products that I use regularly. These include potting soil, fertilizer, perlite, seeds starting mix and coir.
1 Dr. Earth Pot of Gold Potting Soil
2. The Old Farmer’s Almanac Fertilizer
3. Organic Perlite
4. Burpee Seed Starting Mix
5. Coco Coir Soilless Growing Medium
OMRI Listed FAQ
Below is a list of frequently asked questions and their answers concerning OMRI and OMRI Listed products:
OMRI reviews products to determine if they are in compliance with organic standards from one of the following: USDA National Organic Program, Canada Organic Regime and Mexican Organic Products Law. If a product meets one of these standards, it is considered to be OMRI Listed.
OMRI stands for Organic Materials Review Institute. It’s a non-profit organization that creates a list of products that are safe for organic gardening. The goal of OMRI is to support the growth and trust of the global organic community through expert, independent and transparent verification of input materials, and through education and technical assistance.
If you want to grow the best food possible, you need to make sure that you are not bringing something into your garden that includes pesticides, herbicides or synthetic hormones. Looking for Listed products is the best way to make this goal a reality.
The scientific community has linked pesticides, herbicides and synthetic hormones to cancer and other health concerns. It’s best to keep these chemicals out of your family’s diet. Food grown organically, in your backyard, is a very good step towards a healthy lifestyle.
Suppliers pay to have OMRI review their products. OMRI also accepts donations.
The name is pronounced “Om-re.”
There is a search page where you can search for Listed products. For example, if you search for “seed starting mix,” the search engine will show you all the Listed seed starting mix products. In fact, the search engine will show you all the Listed products and even all the products Listed WITH RESTRICTIONS.
Final thoughts
If you are not making it yourself, I hope you will only use OMRI Listed seed starting mix, potting soil, fertilizer and soil additives in your garden and with your farm animals, too.
This is the best strategy for growing the very best food for your family.
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- It’s Important to Transplant Seedlings at the Proper Soil Temperature
- Getting Rid of Gnats on Seedlings
- Should You Use Neptune’s Harvest Liquid Fertilizer?
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