In-fighting In The Organic Movement

Groups Spar Over The Future Of Organic And How To Grow The Market Dan Shapley / News Editor The Department of Agriculture''s proposal to allow certain non-organic ingredients in foods labeled “USDA Organic” has divided the two most prominent advocates for organic foods – the Organic Consumers Association and the Organic Trade Association. At the heart of their dispute is how the free market will respond to the USDA regulation of those products labeled “organic” – which by law means they can have up to 5% of non-organic ingredients, provided that that 5% is made up of ingredients that can''t be found in an organic form. To allow non-organic ingredients allowed in “organic” foods because they aren''t commercially available, according to Craig Minowa, an environmental scientist with the Organic Consumers Association, is to ensure that those ingredients will never be commercially available. “If you allow something like the natural sausage casings or the hops or any one of these ingredients on this national list, it creates no motivation to use the organic form even though it is out there on the market,” he said. “They''re really hard to get off the list once they get on them." In other words: if it''s cheaper to make a sausage with a non-organic casing, few if any sausage makers would choose the more expensive organic sausage casing if they didn''t have to. Not so, according to the Organic Trade Association. The USDA law clearly states that producers must use an organic ingredient if it exists in the “appropriate form, quality and quantity,” even if it is on the list, said Holly Givens, a spokeswoman for the Organic Trade Association, which supports the USDA''s list without commenting on any of the individual ingredients. “Having the list in detailed form signals to the marketplace what ingredients are needed,” Givens said. “The law requires that people use organics if available.” That requirement, she added, has no exemption for high cost, so even a new and high priced ingredient would have to be used if it is available commercially in the right “form, quality, and quantity,” as the law states. Further, she said, if organic sausages were stripped of their label because the casing – about 1% of the total product – is not organic, it would destroy a growing market. “A limit on sausage casings,” she said, "would potentially cause fewer people to want to raise organic animals, making meat scarcer, rather than build up the amount that is available.” __________________________________________________________ SAFE FOOD WATCH: Truth In Organics A special report about the USDA organic program, and the government proposal to allow dozens of non-organic ingredients in certified “organic” foods. The 38 Non-organic Ingredients In 'USDA Organic' Foods What They Are, How They''re Used, And How They Made The List When "Organic" Doesn't Quite Mean Organic If A Sausage Is Organic, Why Isn't The Casing? In-fighting In The Organic Movement Two Prominent Organic Advocates Argue Over The Future Of Organic, And How To Grow The Market How To Comment On The USDA's Proposed Non-Organic List The Public Has Until August 28 To Weigh In Easy Organic Recipe Ideas Great Ideas For Greening Your Diet Organic Schmanic. Why Should I Pay More For Food? The Reasons For Buying Organic Foods Keep Growing, And Include Some You''ve Probably Never Thought Of. Organic Labels Come In Different Shapes and Sizes A Guide To Organic Labels And Their Confusing Cousins Blog: Organic Labels / Garden Division Leslie Land __________________________________________________________