| The term "organic" is being tossed | | | | case of meat or milk, it means that all the |
| around quite a bit lately, and you'll soon be | | | | USDA stipulations concerning hormones, feed, |
| seeing a big jump in the number of organic | | | | and time spent outdoors were met.Organic: |
| choices when you visit your local Safeway or | | | | This type of produce or meat doesn't quite |
| Wal-Mart store. That's because the demand for | | | | meet the highest organic standard, but the |
| organic produce, milk, and meat has been | | | | remaining 5 percent of its ingredients have |
| steadily increasing, to the point where the | | | | been approved for organic use by a nationwide |
| giant retail chains have begun to take the | | | | certification organization called the |
| trend seriously. In turn, there will be a | | | | National Organics Standards Board.Made with |
| growing concern over the certification | | | | organic ingredients: This certification |
| process as factory-style farms begin to | | | | assures consumers that no less than 70 |
| muscle their way into the organic food market | | | | percent of the produce, milk, or meat was |
| as a result of increased demand. In 2000, the | | | | produced using organic ingredients. The last |
| U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) | | | | two other labels you'll see are considerably |
| established what were supposed to be clear | | | | more ambiguous. First, there's the term |
| guidelines for gaining organic certification, | | | | "free-range," which is used |
| but various ambiguous areas will continue to | | | | interchangeably with the term |
| confuse consumers until those guidelines are | | | | "cage-free." The USDA regulates the |
| made even more clear. For instance, under | | | | use of either term when it comes to poultry, |
| USDA rules, growers of fruits, vegetables, | | | | but not to eggs, and there’s no clear |
| meat, and milk are forbidden from using most | | | | definition of how much outdoor access animals |
| synthetic pesticides or fertilizer in food | | | | should receive. The other term is |
| production. They're also prohibited from | | | | "natural," which has no real |
| using genetic engineering, irradiation, or | | | | meaning in any food commodity other than meat |
| sewage sludge. To be certified organic, | | | | and poultry, which can't have any artificial |
| livestock must be fed nothing but certified | | | | coloring, chemical preservatives, or |
| organic feed and can't be given any sort of | | | | ingredients. Although it's supposed to have |
| growth hormone. They must also be allowed to | | | | only minimal processing, there's no |
| be outside at least a portion of every day, | | | | certification process that meat or poultry |
| though the rules for what that actually means | | | | producers must comply with in order to place |
| have been open to serious dispute over the | | | | the term on their labels. As the market |
| past few years.The USDA guidelines were meant | | | | continues to grow, you'll be seeing these |
| to be fairly all-inclusive, but there are a | | | | labels more and more. What remains to be seen |
| number of gradients, as well. Here are some | | | | is if the USDA will tighten or loosen the |
| of the labels you'll see in your local co-op | | | | process in order to allow producers to meet |
| or supermarket:100% organic: For produce, | | | | the growing demand for organic |
| this designation means that fruits or | | | | products.Copyright © 2006 Jeanette J. |
| vegetables were grown completely without | | | | FisherJeanette Fisher teaches environmental |
| synthetic fertilizers or pesticides. In the | | | | interior design. |