USDA Releases Proposed Organic Rule

WASHINGTON--The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Tuesday released its revised Proposed Rule for implementation of the National Organic Program. The release comes more than two years after its last attempt, which was met with a public outcry and more than 275,000 comments.

The rule will be published Monday in the Federal Register, after which there will be a 90 day comment period.

"This organic standard is easy to understand and easy to explain," said Dan Glickman, Secretary of Agriculture. "It's the most comprehensive, strictest organic rule in the world." Glickman said he anticipates having the rule finalized by the end of this year, after which there will be an 18-month implementation phase. As promised by the Secretary after the last proposed rule, the revised rule does not allow for products of irradiation, genetic engineering or that are grown with industrial sludge to be included in products labeled as organic, including any nonorganic ingredients in such a product.

It also establishes a USDA organic seal and a four-tier category for the labeling of organic products. "The confusing array of organic seals and labels will be replaced by easy-to-read and sensible, accurate labeling," said Sen. Patrick Leahy, original sponsor of the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990. The seal resembles that of the meat grading system; the words USDA Certified Organic are in blue on a badge of white outlined in red. In the labeling system, products that are 100 percent organic can be labeled as such and those that have at least 95 percent organic ingredients can label, for example, "organic cereal." Products made with between 50 and 95 percent organic ingredients can label "made with organic ingredients" while below 50 percent organic content banishes the term "organic" from the main label.

Bob Anderson, chairman of the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB), which made recommendations to USDA regarding the rule, said while he has not seen the full 650+ pages of the proposed rule, he is encouraged by USDA's assurances that it represents NOSB's recommendations. "Strict organic standards will be embraced by the organic industry," he said.

"These standards can and will become the de facto world standards for organic foods and production." A side-by-side comparison should be released to the public by the end of the week. USDA also considered adopting the American Organic Standards (AOS), which was passed by members of the organic industry last fall; however, USDA did not use the AOS standards because AOS is so new and is not universally endorsed by the industry.

Organic industry members voiced cautious optimism at the release of the proposed rule. "This is a regulation that I think we will all recognize and that will resonate with the principles of organic farming as we know them," said Katherine DiMatteo, executive director of the Organic Trade Association (OTA). DiMatteo did point out there are a few areas of concern, in particular the issue of sourcing approved materials and ingredients, and the continued concern of contamination with genetically modified organisms. "Issues such as GMO drift are not addressed yet, and we need to determine where the organic system fits into other methods in agriculture that impact us," she said.

The rule also includes a National List of allowed and prohibited synthetic substances, all of which were found in the NOSB recommendations and contain NOSB's "annotations" on manner of use. There is still no official process for how amendments to the National List can be proposed and considered by NOSB and the Secretary. "I hope that NOSB and USDA will work in a timely manner to resolve this petition process issue," DiMatteo said.

Glickman also announced several steps the agency and administration are taking to support the infrastructure of the organic industry. President Clinton's fiscal 2001 budget proposes $5 million for research to develop improved organic production and processing methods, evaluate economic benefits to farmers and develop new organic markets. USDA will also establish a pilot organic crop insurance program, as organic farmers are not currently eligible for most current federal insurance programs, and will be working in a partnership with the University of California at Davis to research organic production methods and how to market farmers' products.

Despite the emphasis at the rule's release on the strict standards of organic, Glickman and Leahy both reiterated that the agency is not setting a food safety standard. "Just because something is labeled as organic does not mean it is any more superior, any safer or more healthy than conventional foods," Glickman said. "The organic classification is not a judgement about the quality or safety of any product. Organic is a process issue."

You can find the proposed rule and information sheets from USDA at http://www.ams.usda.gov/nop/

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