What's In A Name?

It seemed simple enough - define organic. Yet as concerned consumers understood, behind the innocuous moniker lay a landmine of issues. The sales of organic foods has been growing by about 20% a year, just as concerns about the effects of pesticides and genetic modification has prompted outcries in the European Union, Japan, Canada and - to a lesser extent - the U.S. Naturally, companies such as agricultural chemical producers, biotech firms, and agribusiness giants had a vested interest in ensuring that their products could be included in the potentially lucrative "organic" designation. So consumers were angered, but perhaps not surprised, when the USDA proposed regulations allowing the use of human sewage sludge as fertilizer, irradiation of foods, and genetic engineering in the production of organic foods. .

Fortunately, this sufficiently incensed consumers that they inundated the USDA with over 275,000 responses demanding revision. That remarkable public outcry prompted revisions which ultimately acknowledged every major concern activists had. Those revised standards became effective in March of 2000, and here is an overview: .

The designation "organic" refers to how food was produced, not to what it contains. Food labeled "100% organic" must contain only organically produced ingredients, except water and salt. "Organic" indicates that the food contains at least 95% organically produced ingredients, and a product containing at least 70% organic ingredients may advertise that it is "made with organic ingredients," and may list those ingredients. The processing and handling of organic food must prevent the co0mingling of organic and conventional products. In all cases, farmers producing less than $5,000 per year are exempt from certification but must still comply with the regulations in order to label their products "organic"..

Organic crops must be raised on land which has been free of prohibited pesticides, fertilizers, and other chemicals for at least three years. During that time, food produced on the land is labeled "transitional." Buying food labeled "transitional" supports farmers who are in the process of converting from conventional to organic agriculture. Organic farming relies on fertility and pest management practices such as using beneficial insects, interplanting, crop rotation, composting, and cover cropping. When these techniques are insufficient, certain natural or synthetic chemicals are approved. .

Animal products such as meat, eggs, and dairy may also be labeled organic. IN this case, the livestock must be fed only organically grown feed, and may be confined indoors only for specific circumstances such as treating a sick or injured animal. No growth hormones or antibiotics may be given to organically raised animals, and when prohibited medications are needed for the animals health, they may not be withheld but the resulting animal products will not be labeled organic. Vaccines are allowed. .

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