An organic certification standards program is earning national praise for reducing the confusion about the legitimacy of organic foods.
The program, started by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, introduced a new set of standards for the labeling and handling of organic foods.
"The new 'USDA Organic' label certifies that farmers whose products carry the label have earned it by meeting new standards," said U.S. Rep. Tom Udall in a press release. "Now consumers will be able to trust the products claiming to be organic really are organic - if they carry the USDA label."
The USDA standards stem from the Organic Food Production Act, and will establish a four-tiered system for identifying organic content in food. Organic products, including milk, cheese, vegetables, fruit, grain, meat and poultry are some of the fastest growing products in health and nutrition today.
Organic products are produced without the standard array of potentially toxic chemicals, hormones and genetic modification commonly used in so-called "nutritional products" since the 1950s.
"A program like this is long overdue," said Kevin Gallegos, manager of the Wild Oats store on San Mateo. "There have never really been exact standards for organic foods before, which led to many companies trying to pass off their products as organic, which led to truly organic foods being mistrusted and gaining a bad reputation."
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The new labeling program includes several distinctions in order to be consumer-friendly and reduce the possibility of false classification. "Completely organic" foods will have a specific label distinguishing it. The USDA typically reserves this classification for one-ingredient foods such as fruits and vegetables." "Organic" product labels will be for foods certified to contain at least 95 percent organic ingredients. "Made With Organic Ingredients" labels will be reserved for products containing a minimum of 70 percent organic materials, and an additional classification, "Some Organic Ingredients," will be the label for foods containing less than 70 percent organic ingredients.
According to the press release, although use in the U.S. increased ten-fold from 1945 to 1989, with total crop loss nearly doubling during that period.
"Organic foods have received a bad name, leaving people whose diet is composed mainly of such foods without many options," said Crystal Arguello, a UNM student and vegetarian. "If a product contained only one organic ingredient they still called it organic, making people very wary of the products they bought. This should be a huge help."
Udall, the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Rural Enterprises, Agriculture and Technology, voted for the 2002 Farm Bill, of which the new labeling program is a component.
The bill, which contains research, cost-sharing and marketing provisions intended to help the organic industry as it grows into a more mainstream component of the farming sector in the U.S.
According to sources organic farming not only yields more flavorful, less toxic ingredients - it is also the only truly sustainable means to support an ever-growing worldwide demand for food and nutritional products.
"For consumers, this rule means clear and consistent labeling that will affirm the content, production process and handling of organic food," Udall said. "It means they are produced with organic ingredients and environmentally friendly practices, and without chemical pesticides, irradiation, genetically modified seeds and antibiotics."
While sales of organically produced foods are barely two percent of what U.S. consumers buy in conventional foods, the rate of growth in sales of organic products has averaged more than 20 percent per year since 1989.
