News Line
Extension Website: www.aces.edu	Consumer Affairs Home Horticulture Health and Nutrition Agriculture

USDA DEFINES ORGANIC FOODS

AUBURN, MARCH 21, 2000--The United Stated Department of Agriculture now has consistent, national organic guidelines in place. The process has taken 10 years to get the National Organic Program (NOP) Proposed Rule of 2000 on the table.

Earlier this month, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman announced a "single, national organic standard, backed by consistent and accurate labeling."

"The new standard will greatly reduce consumer confusion. It will help consumers know what they're buying, and organic farmers will know what's expected of them," Glickman said.

The new organic rules are not safety rules; they're marketing rules.

The principal guidelines for organic production are to use materials and practices that enhance the ecological balance of natural systems. Organic agricultural practices cannot ensure products are completely free of residues. However, methods minimize pollution from air, soil and water.

Private and state agencies certify organic practices, but there has been no national requirement for certification and no guarantee that the term "organic" means the same thing from state to state or even locally.

The Organic Trade Association says both consumers and producers of organic products have sought national standards to clear up this confusion in the marketplace and to protect against mislabeling or fraud.

The retail value of organic foods produced in the United States in 1999 was about $6 billion. The number of organic farmers is increasing about 12 percent a year. The USDA says there are roughly 12,200 organic farms nationwide.

 Secretary Glickman says organic farming is one of the fastest growing sectors of American agriculture. One third of U.S. consumers already buy some organic food. The Organic Trade Association projects growth of 20 percent to 25 percent a year as organic products become mainstream.

Any farm, wild-crop harvesting or handling operation that wants to sell an agricultural product as organically produced will be affected by the proposed national organic standards. Everyone selling products labeled as organic must be certified, except growers who gross less than $5,000 annually and retailers who repack bulk products.

Once the proposal is implemented, production and handling operations will have 18 months to apply for accreditation. At the end of the 18-month period, all organic producers and handlers must comply with the national organic regulations.

When the USDA first proposed NOP, it received almost 276,000 public comments -- a historic response -- nearly all of which were negative. The proposal included genetically modified organisms, food irradiation, antibiotics in livestock and dairy production, and use of sewage sludge in organic production.

This time, the questionable practices have been excluded. Based on overwhelming public opinion, the new proposal prohibits use of these practices in production of all organic foods, even though there's no current scientific evidence these practices present unacceptable risks.

The public can submit comments on the revised proposal in both written and electronic form until June 14. The USDA will then review and categorize the comments, make any necessary revisions and submit the final rule.