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Certified Naturally Grown (CNG) offers peer-review certification to farmers and beekeepers producing food, flowers, and fiber for their local communities by working in harmony with nature, without relying on synthetic chemicals or GMOs.

Our standards are based on the highest ideals of the organic movement. Our approach is based on transparency, direct relationships and a firm belief in our ability to create something uniquely valuable by working together.

CNG certification gives my customers more trust in our products.

CNG certification holds me accountable to holistic practices that are reviewed by like minded peers.

I value being CNG certified because I want my customers to know that they are eating vegetables that are healthy and nutritious! It is very important to me to grow using methods that are safe for my community and for the health of the planet.

I love being able to say more than ‘I am NOT certified organic, but..’. Now I can Say ‘I AM Certified Naturally Grown, which is…’. I love using positive statements to explain my growing practices and without a certification it is hard to explain your growing practices to a customer. Although I have always grown with natural methods, and always will, being part of CNG to bolster my marketing and participate in a community of farmers who are constantly learning from one another makes me very proud. 

CNG is so much more than just a label.  The peer to peer inspections are amazing, we are constantly learning and sharing knowledge.  CNG is made for small scale, values-driven farmers like us.

Josephine Alexander - Tubby Creek Farm
Chad and Xenia of Hole in the Woods Farm, IN

One year, our alpaca pasture flooded and then we spent the summer battling the Colorado potato beetle. Thanks to advice from a fellow farmer during our inspection, our yield was actually quite high that year and we were able to recover. Being CNG is the most amazing professional development!

Chad and Xenia - Hole in the Woods Farm
Ed of Tiny Bridge Farm, NC

It’s more than how we label our products or how we grow vegetables, we really value meeting and learning from other growers. We grow our community through the farmer-to-farmer peer certification process.

Ed Graves - Tiny Bridge Farm

We value being CNG certified so our customers know their food is coming from a trusted source who takes steps to ensure they get the clean and safe produce they expect.

Liz Visser of Blandford Nature Center Farm, MI

I enjoy being CNG certified because it provides accountability to my CSA members and market customers for my growing practices.  I appreciate the peer review system, because I feel connected to a community of small scale, sustainable farmers across the country!

Liz Visser - Blandford Nature Center Farm

CNG certification allows me to share my dedication to safe sustainable growing practices with my customers and fellow farmers.

Credentials are the basis for professional industries across the spectrum. Being certified brings validation to my farm business through assessment. Plus I get the added bonus of talking with other farmers who share similar ideological ideas surrounding growing food and land stewardship.

I have met a bunch of new farmers in my region through CNG.  I probably would have never met these fine folks otherwise.  I value the CNG peer to peer inspections.  I’ve learned a lot inspecting other farms and being inspected in turn.  CNG certification has also increased my product’s value to my customers, and has opened doors with wholesalers.

Being part of CNG allows us to engage with our customers about how we grow our fruits and vegetables! We love being part of this very important movement. 

Mike Hedge - Hedge Family Farm

Instead of customers taking my word, being CNG proves what we say and do is true. We wanted a certificate to show we care and want the best for our customers. 

Liz Visser of Owl's Nest Farm, MD

It’s both educational and comforting to have access through CNG to the wisdom of farmers with similar concerns and growing conditions.

Liz - Owl's Nest Farm

We value the Community based and driven aspects along with the ethical values of CNG. Having a label which represents sustainable agriculture and natural and organic practices shows we care about what we grow and what we give to our community.

Being certified is a great way to connect with health minded customers who think about the food they eat and where that food came from. Customers value that we’re doing what we say we’re doing and being CNG is a great way to prove that to anyone who can’t come to the farm to see for themselves.

I wanted the CNG certification to add credibility to what I already do, to help me stand out at the market, and to validate and amplify to the public my belief in regenerative agriculture. An added bonus is the connection it gives me to other farmers with similar values.

Over 500 certified farms
. . . and growing!

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