What do the National Organic Standards mean for consumers?
Passage of the Organic Foods Production Act (OFPA) in 1990 created the U.S. National Organic Standards. The National Organic Program (NOP) of the Agricultural Marketing Service, United States Department of Agricultural (USDA), is authorized to enforce OFPA. Since the National Organic Standards were fully implemented in October 2002, all agricultural products labeled “organic” must be in compliance with U.S. organic law. The word “organic” on U.S. products means that the ingredients and production methods have been verified by an accredited certification agency as meeting or exceeding USDA standards for organic production. In short, consumers will have the assurance that products labeled “organic” have been produced in compliance with the standards set forth by the USDA.
