Organic 101: What the USDA Organic Label Means
This is the third installment of the Organic 101 series that explores different aspects of the USDA organic regulations.
Organic certification requires that farmers and handlers document their processes and get inspected every year. Organic on-site inspections account for every component of the operation, including, but not limited to, seed sources, soil conditions, crop health, weed and pest management, water systems, inputs, contamination and commingling risks and prevention, and record-keeping. Tracing organic products from start to finish is part of the USDA organic promise.
Amidst nutrition facts, ingredients lists, and dietary claims on food packages, “organic” might appear as one more piece of information to decipher when shopping for foods. So understanding what “organic” really means can help shoppers make informed choices during their next visit to the store or farmers’ market.
USDA certified organic foods are grown and processed according to federal guidelines addressing, among many factors, soil quality, animal raising practices, pest and weed control, and use of additives. Organic producers rely on natural substances and physical, mechanical, or biologically based farming methods to the fullest extent possible.
Produce can be called organic if it’s certified to have grown on soil that had no prohibited substances applied for three years prior to harvest. Prohibited substances include most synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. In instances when a grower has to use a synthetic substance to achieve a specific purpose, the substance must first be approved according to criteria that examine its effects on human health and the environment (see other considerations in “Organic 101: Allowed and Prohibited Substances”).
As for organic meat, regulations require that animals are raised in living conditions accommodating their natural behaviors (like the ability to graze on pasture), fed 100% organic feed and forage, and not administered antibiotics or hormones.
When it comes to processed, multi-ingredient foods, the USDA organic standards specify additional considerations. Regulations prohibit organically processed foods from containing artificial preservatives, colors, or flavors and require that their ingredients are organic, with some minor exceptions. For example, processed organic foods may contain some approved non-agricultural ingredients, like enzymes in yogurt, pectin in fruit jams, or baking soda in baked goods.
When packaged products indicate they are “made with organic [specific ingredient or food group],” this means they contain at least 70% organically produced ingredients. The remaining non-organic ingredients are produced without using prohibited practices (genetic engineering, for example) but can include substances that would not otherwise be allowed in 100% organic products. “Made with organic” products will not bear the USDA organic seal, but, as with all other organic products, must still identify the USDA-accredited certifier. You can look for the identity of the certifier on a packaged product for verification that the organic product meets USDA’s organic standards.
As with all organic foods, none of it is grown or handled using genetically modified organisms, which the organic standards expressly prohibit (see “Organic 101: What Organic Farming (and Processing) Doesn’t Allow”).
Becoming familiar with the USDA organic label and understanding its claims empower consumers to make informed decisions about the food they purchase. While there are many marketing claims that add value to foods, consumers can be assured that USDA organic products are verified organic at all steps between the farm and the store.
This is all great.
Of course you realize that because idiot consumers demanded that the government get involved with the definition and certification policy, and the government has a one-size-fits-all mentality, and the one-size that the government serves best is the mega-industrial size, that small farmers who do not have on-staff loyyers and CPAs cannot become “certified organic” without spending a double-digit share of their annual revenue satisfying your bloated process.
As it stands right now, “organic” is used mainly by the same industrial ag outfits as consumers were trying to get away from by having organic food in the first place.
I think it’s wonderful that you are doing these blogs. Thank you. As for the issues with consumers and understanding regulations…this is a problem in all areas of agriculture, not just organic. At least the NOP is trying and creating a place for understanding and comments. Bravo.
Yep the USDA. They sure have kept our food supply safe and healthy over the past 30 years. Let my organic farmers and growers do their job so I can buy their products at their farms and at markets. USDA let’s markets sell ‘pink slime’ ground beef. Let’s talk about USDA and the corporate ‘dairys’ they license. No one can keep track of where that milk comes from. USDA allows carrageenan in infant formula for crying out loud. It’s a bowel irritant. Anyone can write a list of standards. No one is honest enough to enforce them. What a load.
USDA is not serious enough about organic agriculture as is evident by the limits for cost share as opposed to what I can receive as a conventional producer. This is blatant discrimination. There are also not enough staff that are knowledgeable or want to work with organic producers. We need to be thinking ahead a few decades to when the oil, water and fertilizer run out. How do we farm then? Organic production in this country needs to be ramped up significantly and taught extensively. Our future food security and millions of starving people are at stake in the coming decades. I can produce enough food on 20 acres to feed 100 families easily with organic production. I am also building soil carbon and helping reduce greenhouse gases. Why not put some folks from Rodale on the staff of USDA to balance out the number of ex-Monsanto employees working there? USDA is more about production these days than about sustainability.
I agree with the Old Technician. We need to strive to produce food in the adsence of oil and fertilizer. Too many of our farmers are producing food that we don’t even eat directly. It is grown to prop up some other industry. Like the Old Technician said, it is amazing how much food you can grow just on 20 acres. If if concentrate on feeding our communities good quality foods, the world will take care of itself.
I appreciate what the USDA did under the direction of Enrique Figueroa to create the federal rule for organic food in the Clinton Administration. Our first year of certification was expensive and complex but I now appreciate the hard questions and close scrutiny of verifiable facts that the CCOF inspector demanded. I was then surprised to find there was a cost share program to help with a portion of the costs, applied, and got a refund on our investment. Healthy organizations have diverse viewpoints among their employees. I think the USDA organics program is working where I live and the way to get to work where you are is to get involved. Enjoy your newsletter and blog. Flood Plain Produce, Pepperwood, California
what rwilymz means is he thinks anyone should be allowed to put an “organic” label on things and lie to consumers, because the government stepping in when it comes to consumer rights isn’t one of the first amendments or anything.