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http://www.mndaily.com/new_site/article.php?id=3709
USDA sets standards for organic foods and their labels
 By Dan Haugen

 The Department of Agriculture implemented nationwide organic food
standards Monday, more than a decade after Congress assigned the task.

 “Today, when consumers see the USDA national organic seal on products,
they will know that the
 products labeled organic will be consistent across the country,” said
Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman.

 To be certified organic, a food’s production must not involve the use
of pesticides, irradiation or genetic engineering. Food featuring the
“USDA organic” label must be 95 percent organic. Items containing 70
percent or more organic ingredients may be labeled “made with organic
ingredients.”

 Organic Consumers Association spokesman Ronnie Cummins said the
Department of Agriculture standards are a step in the right direction,
but his organization’s Web site still says the standards “represent the
lowest common denominator of what traditionally has been certified as
organic.”

 The association was formed in 1998 to oppose then-proposed Department
of Agriculture organic rules that would have allowed the use of
irradiation, genetic engineering and sewage sludge fertilizer.

 In comparison, Cummins called the Department of Agriculture’s final
draft “a victory,” but said he wishes they would have addressed
“social
justice” aspects of organic production.

 “You can essentially produce food with slave labor and still have it
certified organic,” he said. He also said farm subsidies are not evenly
distributed between conventional and organic farmers.

 Along with the new standards, the Department of Agriculture set aside
$8 million to help defray certification costs and fund organic food
research projects.

 Jean Kinsey, director of the University’s Food Industry Center, said,
“Organic food sales have been rising by about 20 percent per year, but
they still account for less than 2 percent of all food and beverage
sales in the United States.”


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