Members are appointed by the Secretary and these make recommendations, one of the most important of which is to review and develop the National List of Approved and Prohibited Substances.
Members can serve on multiple committees at the same time and the full chart of assignments can be found at USDA National Organic Program website.
Members advise the Secretary, but are not responsible for overseeing the testing of “organically produced agricultural products”, which could lead to “unavoidable” environmental contamination or health hazards.
“Organic agriculture practices cannot ensure that products are completely free of residues; however, methods are used to minimize pollution from air, soil and water.
The primary goal of organic agriculture is to optimize the health and productivity of interdependent communities of soil life, plants, animals and people.”