Passion and Some Tense Moments at the USDA National Organic Standards Board Meeting

Agribusiness and the Organic Community Come Together in the End on Most Issues The Cornucopia Institute The National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) concluded its four-day semiannual meeting in Madison, Wisconsin on Thursday with votes and decisions on several issues impacting the organic industry. The meeting began on Monday with a comprehensive progress report by USDA… Read more »

Scrambled Eggs: Report Spotlights “Systemic” Abuses in Organic Egg Production

Family Farmers Face Unfair Competition from “Organic” Factory Farms CORNUCOPIA, WI — An independent report has been released that focuses on widespread abuses in organic egg production, primarily by large industrial agribusinesses. The study profiles the exemplary management practices employed by many family-scale organic farmers engaged in egg production, while spotlighting abuses at so-called factory… Read more »

Not Crying over Spilt Soymilk

Organic Farmers Celebrating Victory over Corporate Agribusiness CORNUCOPIA, WI — It’s not often that family-scale farmers can go toe-to-toe with a $12 billion agribusiness and come out victors. But organic soybean producers, and a modestly scaled but powerful ally, The Cornucopia Institute, are claiming victory over Dean Foods in the organic marketplace. Dean Foods, the… Read more »

The Food Safety Shell Game

By Mark Kastel and Will Fantle What isn’t being discussed in Congress, during the ongoing debate on the broken federal food safety system, is the root cause of the most serious pathogenic outbreaks in our food—the elephant (poop) in the room. The relatively new phenomena of nationwide pathogenic outbreaks, be they from salmonella or E…. Read more »

More Opportunities to Tell The USDA What You Think About Animal ID!

Many family-scale organic and direct marketing farmers consider this an economic threat to their businesses The USDA continues to hold public meetings to discuss its “new framework” for animal traceability (formally known as the National Animal Identification System or NAIS). The agency has stated that this new framework will apply only to animals that cross… Read more »

Watchdog Calls on USDA to Boost Transparency in Organic Governance

Secretary Vilsack Asked to Balance Public’s Interest with Corporate Involvement CORNUCOPIA, WI: In a move to protect the growing organic industry from undue corporate influence, a leading organic watchdog group released a letter, dated June 7, calling on the USDA to collaborate with the organic community on pending appointments to the National Organic Standards Board… Read more »

New Administration at USDA Steps Up to End Organic Corruption

Industry Watchdog / Washington Post Investigation Brings Down Old Leadership Washington, DC: In a strong departure from Bush-era policy, the USDA’s National Organic Program released a memo today banning synthetic “accessory nutrients” — ending a scandal that brought down its former organic leadership. At issue were some of the nation’s leading manufacturers of infant formula… Read more »

Organic Industry Watchdog Asks USDA to Crack Down on Labeling Abuses

Prominent Brands Using “Organic” in Their Name When Products Don’t Qualify Cornucopia, WI—While the organic label is the gold standard of eco-labels on food packages, one major loophole in the federal organic standards remains—which an organic industry watchdog is asking the USDA to close. Companies are tightly regulated in terms of their use of the… Read more »

Organic Watchdog Asks USDA to Overturn Bush-Era Illegal Shenanigans

Synthetic Oils in Infant Formula Could Be Making Babies Sick Cornucopia, WI – For years, the USDA’S National Organic Program has failed to enforce federal organic standards that prohibit the use of certain unapproved synthetic substances in organic infant formula and other organic foods. The Cornucopia Institute, a Wisconsin-based food and farm policy research group,… Read more »