When Glen Putnam learned earlier this month that the state of New Hampshire would no longer certify his family’s dairy farm in Piermont as organic, it came as a shock.

“If your certification runs out, you’re dumping your milk on the ground,” Putnam said of the news. He sells his milk to Stonyfield, which does not accept conventional milk.

“It would mean, if I stay organic, that I find someone else to certify me and start all over,” he added.

He struggled to stay on top of the organic certification paperwork between his day job, his farm chores and his two kids, and he did not relish the prospect of starting over with a new certifier. The Putnams’ Piermont farm had not been breaking even, and he and his wife, Meredith, had already decided to sell rather than “throwing effort after foolishness.”

They will have to surrender their certification by Dec. 30 and may lose the last of their dairy income.

The state Department of Agriculture, Markets and Food, citing budget constraints, notified 17 certified organic livestock operations — as well as 27 processors and handlers whose products include coffee, bread and vodka — that the state would no longer certify them as organic. It will continue to certify the majority of the farms it services, including fruit and vegetable operations.

The farmers who received the department’s letters had two options: They could surrender their organic certification by Dec. 30, or they could apply for certification with another certifier, often private organic associations. If they submitted proof of an application, they could continue to list the state as their certifier for another six to 12 months.

“Overall, the work we have to do is increasing,” said Agriculture Commissioner Shawn Jasper. The U.S. Department of Agriculture sets the standards for organic certification. He described it as “a complex and strict standard” with inspections, audits and reporting. New Hampshire is one of only 15 states that certifies organic farms.

“We’ve been unable to keep up with changes and all of the requirements,” Jasper said. “It’s just been too much for the small staff that we have.”

Jasper emphasized that the department charges much less for organic certification than private certifiers. For example, a farm that paid the state $800 to maintain its USDA organic status each year would pay a private certifier over $3,000, he said.

Yet Jasper said the department is “certainly not charging anywhere near what it realistically costs to do.” To his knowledge, it had not increased its certification fees in more than 15 years.

“My personal feeling is that user fees should be covered by users. We shouldn’t be looking to other taxpayers to cover the cost,” he said.

The problem, though, is bigger than the state’s limited resources. There is a nationwide workforce shortage of certifiers, said Nikki Kolb, who works for Northeast Organic Farming Association of New Hampshire.

Kolb said the state’s announcement came at a time when “the state should be working to build up organic certification and work with farmers to increase resilience in our state and food production.” She listed widely shared benefits from organic farming, including soil health and food security. — VALLEY NEWS