Examining the policy diffusion of organic food and agriculture legislation in the U.S. - the role of the states in developing organic standards

Abstract

From 1976-2010, 38 states created and passed legislation regarding the regulation of organic food and agriculture. Most legislation was passed during the time period of 1985-1990, a period that ended with Congress passing the Organic Food Production Act [OFPA] in 1990. OFPA was passed to eliminate the patchwork of state and private third-party organic standards regulating the market and to maintain access to international markets by assuring U.S. standards were harmonized with key markets. Subsequently, it may have been expected that state adoption of organic policies would cease after federal action in 1990. However, many states continued to adopt and modify existing policies after the passage of OFPA. This research examines the diffusion of organic food and agriculture legislation and dynamics of legislative refinement in the United States both prior to and after federal adoption of organic legislation. With both theoretical and applied implications to be derived, this research uses the policy diffusion literature to examine the diffusion of organic legislation. A mixed-methods approach is utilized to answer the central research question of why do some states adopt organic food and agriculture legislation while others do not? The quantitative portion of this research uses time-series logistical regressions to test an enhanced unified model of policy diffusion. Time controls were used to evaluate the nationwide dynamics across several time periods. In addition, regional models were constructed for four statistically significant regions to further examine regional variations in diffusion factors. The qualitative portion of this research consists of a comparative case study between a leader and laggard state adopters. California and Georgia were the state cases selected for analysis. The results of this analysis suggest that wealth, political culture, partisan control of state government, state vegetable production, third-party certification organizations, horizontal pressures, national-scale pressures, and salience are key explanatory factors for state adoption of organic food and agriculture legislature from 1976-2010. Per capita wealth, issue salience, and regional effects are the most robust explanatory power over the 35-year time period and for each adoption-type. Pre-1990 state adoptions were also strongly influenced by the presence of third-party certifiers and the policy type design. Post-1990 state adoptions were additionally influenced by federal adoption and implementation, partisan control of state government, and state vegetable production. Action at the federal level, including federal adoption and implementation, did not dramatically deter state adoption or cause the repeal of state organic food and agriculture statutes. Across all time periods, certain regions remain distinctive in terms of diffusion dynamics including the Far West, North Central, Southeast, and Mid-Atlantic regions. Two case studies, California and Georgia, shed some light on how adoption of organic food and agriculture legislation occurred in the Far West and Southeast regions.