COMMON OSP
What Is the Common Organic System Plan (Common OSP)?
What Is the Common Organic System Plan?
The Common Organic System Plan (Common OSP) is a standardized, risk-based Organic System Plan designed to bring greater clarity, consistency, and efficiency to organic certification across the United States.
Developed collaboratively with input from organic certifiers, inspectors, producers, and industry partners, the Common OSP establishes a shared baseline structure for documenting organic practices in alignment with USDA National Organic Program (NOP) regulations.
It is not a regulation, not a mandate, and not proprietary software. It is a public OSP framework intended to be used on paper, in PDFs, within certifier systems, or through third-party platforms such as Quick Organics.
A Shared Foundation for Organic Certification
Today, Organic System Plans vary widely between certifiers. While all must meet the same regulations, the structure, depth, and interpretation of OSP questions often differ, creating unnecessary confusion and rework.
The Common OSP provides:
A consistent question set aligned with NOP regulations
A modular, scope-based structure
A clearer path for documenting compliance
A shared foundation that the entire organic community can build upon
What the Common OSP Is — and Is Not
The Common OSP is:
A standardized OSP template aligned with USDA organic regulations
Designed to support risk-based certification
Free and publicly available as an NOP document
Usable by any certifier, producer, or inspector
The Common OSP is not:
A requirement imposed on certifiers or operators
A replacement for certifier authority or accreditation
A technology mandate
Owned by Quick Organics or any private company
How Quick Organics Fits In
Quick Organics is one of many possible ways to use the Common OSP. Our platform integrates the public Common OSP into a digital Certification Assistant that helps operators complete, update, and maintain their OSP more efficiently.
The Common OSP document itself remains free and public. Subscription fees only apply to optional digital tools such as Quick Organics and includes all you need to achieve and maintain your organic certification, such as recordkeeping, document storage, workflow support, and compliance prompts
