Natural Foods Merchandiser on the Organic Standards

[nosmokes]

original

Natural Foods Merchandiser on the Organic Standards Controversy

Congress acts to amend organic foods law amid industry split
Elaine Lipson

11/1/2005

In a move applauded by some members of the organic community and strongly
opposed by others, a congressional subcommittee added a rider to the
Agricultural Appropriations Bill last week that provides for changes to the
Organic Foods Production Act of 1990.

The Organic Trade Association, based in Greenfield, Mass., proposed the
language of the amendment, which focuses on standards for synthetic
ingredients in organic food processing, on transition guidelines for dairy
cows, and on the power of the Secretary of Agriculture to grant emergency
exemptions for "commercially unavailable" organic crops.

While a number of organic manufacturers resolutely supported OTA's
initiative, the Organic Consumers Association, Consumers Union, The Center
for Food Safety, and other advocacy and consumer watchdog groups fought it,
generating more than 300,000 messages to Congress from consumers and
industry members opposing the rider. The legislation was temporarily delayed
to give the organic industry time to reach a compromise, to no avail.

The rider overturns a previous court ruling in favor of Maine organic
blueberry farmer Arthur Harvey, who argued that the OFPA prohibits use of
any synthetics. But under federal organic standards written to fulfill the
law and implemented in 2002, 38 synthetic ingredients have been approved for
use in multi-ingredient organic food processing.

If Harvey's lawsuit sought to bring organic practices in line with the
letter of the 1990 law, OTA says it aimed to revise the law to reflect
practices currently in use and vital, they say, to continued growth of the
organic industry. In a statement to The Natural Foods Merchandiser, OTA
said, "No new synthetic substances, including ingredients, may be allowed in
organic production without the review and approval of the National Organic
Standards Board Agriculture], and no loophole was created by Congress' decision. The process
is exactly the way it has always been."
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complete article here.

[illflem]

1. I'm an family farm organic farmer in favor

The synthetics that will be allowed are very limited and subject to review. Some examples of these synthetics are carbon dioxide and pectin.

[nosmokes]

2. probably the 2 most benign substances in the bill.

what about polypropelene? MSG? feed lotted dairy cattle? ascorbic acid?

i'm not necessarily against the use of all these substances, but what i'd like is TRUTH in LABELING. if its not 100% organic then i as a consumer have a right to know that before i buy it.

[texpatriot2004]

3. kick nm