Alfalfa hay, grass hay, grain hay, forage (hay) cubes, pellets, compressed forage bales (twice compressed, eliminating 65% of the volume), other kinds of hay, and straw. State Certified Noxious Weed Free products typically garner a higher price than equivalent-quality non-certified products. USFS and BLM requirements can vary from state to state, contact the public land manger in the state you wish to visit.
A list of certified Forage and Straw Growers can be found at the following web page: Idaho Weed Free Forage and Straw Product Availability.
This list is not totally inclusive and other vendors may have certified product. Other options include contacting the County Weed Control Superintendent in your county, newspaper or electronic classified-ads, or locating a retail animal feed store in your area that sell certified Noxious Weed Free Forage products. Certified forage cubes, pellets, and compressed forage bales should be available at most retail animal feed stores.
You will know you are buying certified Noxious Weed-Free hay/straw bales by identifying an ISDA issued certification bale tag (example below), which will be attached to a strand of bale twine that has the calendar year printed on it, or, you will see least one strand of blue and orange (intertwined) twine indicating certification. Product using colored twine as an indicator will need to be accompanied by a transit certificate which will have specific detail of the inspection used to certify.
*In 2022, NAISMA switched from purple and yellow certification twine to blue and orange, however, they will continue to honor the purple and yellow twine until current inventory has been exhausted.
Bags of certified Noxious Weed Free Forage Cubes/Pellets will be either stamped, stickered, or printed with the following required information:
Certified to the NAISMA Standards
ISDA, 208-332-8607 ISDA Forage Mfg. #
NAISMA Weed Free Forage Certification Program
Certified Noxious Weed Free Compressed Forage bales (twice compressed, eliminating 65% of the volume) can be identified by the yellow binding (strapping) material with the statement “ISDA NWFFS” and the manufacturer’s name printed in purple. In addition, two consecutive vertical purple lines are placed before and after the above statement.
To request a field inspection or fee information, contact your County Weed Control Superintendent. Please contact several weeks prior to the intended harvest date.
An approved inspector must inspect a field prior to harvest, but no sooner than 10 days before harvest. If no prohibited weeds are detected, the inspector will issue a Certificate of NAISMA Standard or a Certificate of Idaho Standard.
NAISMA Standard: Free of weeds declared prohibited according to the NAISMA weed list and the Idaho State Noxious Weed list.
Idaho Standard: Free of weeds declared noxious on the Idaho State Noxious weed list.
Bales must be marked with either an ISDA NWFFS certification bale tag or NAISMA Standard (blue and orange) certification twine (minimum of 1 strand per bale). NAISMA Standard twine can only be used on bales that are certified to the NAISMA Standard. NWFFS certification bale tags and NAISMA Standard blue and orange twine is only available from the Certifying Inspector.
A Transit Certificate will be issued, upon request, for interstate shipments of certified forage or straw that is comprised of bales that are not marked with bale tags. (If bale tags are affixed, a transit certificate is optional).
There are 22 prohibited weeds listed on the NAISMA Standard that are not listed on the Idaho Standard (Idaho Noxious Weed List). Three of the weeds on the NAISMA Standard weed list are Quackgrass, Wild Oats, and Ventenata (added in 2024). These weeds, and others are well, established in many regions of Idaho. If Idaho only used one standard (the NAISMA Standard), it would be very difficult to certify fields where those weeds are present. ISDA incorporated two standards to allow for a greater opportunity to provide certified forage and straw throughout the state and still meets the Idaho USFS and BLM Noxious Weed Free Hay Order requirements. Approximately 99% of the forage and straw inspected in Idaho is certified to the NAISMA Standard. If you are planning a trip to USFS and BLM lands in another state, it would be prudent to possess only NAISMA Standard certified products.
The advantage of NAISMA Standard certified products is that they can be shipped interstate to neighboring NAISMA states that only recognize the NAISMA Standard. Idaho Standard certified hay and straw meet the Idaho USFS and BLM Weed Free Hay Order requirements, however, may not be accepted by neighboring states Hay Orders.
Comparison List between the Idaho Standard and the NAISMA Standard.
An ISDA certifying agent (trained inspector) who is typically a County Weed Superintendents and/or their employee will have the grower fill out an application (once a year), then inspect the perimeter and interior of the field for the presence of NAISMA and Idaho State Noxious Weeds using various patterns depending on the field shape and size. Upon completion, the Inspector will provide the grower with a certificate of inspection and/or provide additional information if a prohibited weed is identified.
A minimum of $40 per field per inspection will be charged for up to 10 acres.
For additional acres:
$3.50 per acre from 11 acres to 50 acres.
$3.00 per acre for 51 acres to 100 acres.
$2.00 per acre from 101 acres and up.
The agent is authorized to assess a general fee of $40 per year to recover overhead costs.
5 cents per bale tag.
About 20 percent more than regular twine. NAISMA Standard blue and orange twine is manufactured in limited quantities compared to regular twine and is only available through ISDA and County Weed Control Superintendents. Prices fluctuate year to year so make sure to contact your certifying agent for information on current costs.
No, the ICIA formerly inspected fields that were being grown for certified seed (ie. barley, wheat, grass seed crops), however, the ICIA no longer conducts these inspections in conjunction with the ISDA NWFFS Program.
It provides assurance that the field was inspected based upon a reasonable and prudent visual inspection, and no prohibited/noxious weeds were detected.
It permits entry of Idaho Standard certified products into Idaho USFS and BLM lands, and NAISMA Standard certified products into USFS and BLM lands throughout the U.S. and in Provinces in Canada.
In other states, some jurisdictions have custom rules that need to be observed. An example would be a county with a county wide requirement that any forage or straw imported must be certified to the NAISMA Standard. As a reminder, always contact the State Department of Agriculture, USFS, and BLM for the state where you plan to travel.
It does not guarantee a complete absence of noxious weeds. It only certifies that the inspector made a reasonable and prudent visual inspection and did not find any.
It does not certify quality, protein content, maturity, etc.
It does not mean that there are no non-noxious/prohibited weeds in the product. The inspector may note on the inspection certificate other factors such as other weeds they identified, but certification is only for NAISMA prohibited weeds and/or Idaho Listed noxious weeds.
Certification under these rules does not qualify a commodity for export from the United States. Applications for certification for export should be made directly to the Division of Plant Industries within the ISDA.
Contact Alexander Hampton at ISDA (208) 332-8607 or email at alexander.hampton@isda.idaho.gov. To become a certified inspector, you must attend an annual ISDA approved training course. The County Weed Superintendent is in charge of Inspections in their respective counties, so it may be prudent to reach out to that individual first.
Contact your County Weed Control Superintendent, or the public land manager where you are recreating.
Noxious weeds displace native plants species, diminish the beauty of the landscape and recreation experience, decrease wildlife habitat and ecosystem bio-diversity, and increase soil erosion rates, sending sediment into streams. Once a noxious weed species is widely distributed it is very difficult to remove it, making their effect on the environment permanent. For more information about Noxious Weeds please visit our Noxious Weed Identification page.