Is the Natural 8-3-5 fertilizer organic?Updated a year ago

The EarthBox Natural 8-3-5 Plant Food / Fertilizer is derived from meat and bone meal, feather meal, sulfate of potash, and dolomite lime. When available, USDA-certified organic by-products may be used in the manufacturing of this fertilizer, but that is not a guarantee; nor are certified organic fertilizer components required to be used to produce organic-certifiable foods. The term “organic” can only be used to certify USDA food products, and the 8-3-5 fertilizer we offer for growing produce allows for the certification of organically-grown produce (outside of California). Fertilizer in and of itself cannot be certified “organic” because it is not food, but can be used for organic food production, based on the components and materials of the fertilizer. 

Our 8-3-5 fertilizer previously was registered with OMRI (Organic Material Review Institute), which is an independent third-party organization that analyzes the materials and components in various agriculture products and the effect they have on the environment. Only those products that pass OMRI’s environmental standards may bear their certification label. Because this certification is extremely costly, and we have had no formula changes to the 8-3-5 fertilizer, we have declined to continue registering this product with OMRI since 2013. The food that is produced with our 8-3-5 fertilizer would still be considered organic (outside of California). Organic controls (herbicides, pesticides, disease controls, etc.) follow these same guidelines.