Delivering the week’s top organic food news
6.23.2021
100% Non-GMO

The Blurry Lines of a Fraudulent Organic Product

(Does this look like an organic farm to you? Photo courtesy of The Cornucopia Institute)


This is the second of a two-part series about fraud in organic. Also, please be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Instagram, and you can support our work by forwarding this email to your colleagues and having them subscribe.  Thank you!

For consumers who believe that the USDA organic seal ensures a certain level of uniformity in how products are grown — not an unreasonable assumption — they are sadly mistaken. And some would say, they are being deceived.

More blatant cases of fraud occur when companies misrepresent products as organic. Such is the case with the two examples that we profiled in the last newsletter — Belcampo labeling meat and chicken as organic when the company knew it was conventional, and the massive issue of imported grains from the Black Sea region mislabeled as organic.

Unfortunately, this issue of organic consumers not receiving the product they think they are purchasing extends far beyond intentional fraud, as there is a vast discrepancy in production methods across many sectors of organic, particularly with eggs, dairy and poultry.

After all, there is a reason why The Cornucopia Institute puts out an Organic Dairy Scorecard and an Organic Egg Scorecard — because not all organic milk or organic eggs are the same. This also holds true for organic berries, tomatoes and greens, some of which are grown in soil and some of which are grown hydroponically.

The question then becomes whether the government has the will to rectify the situation and ban illegal growing methods, such as hydroponics.

Several individuals from the Real Organic Project recently met with USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack to address this very issue. The meeting came about after sending him a letter, which was signed by 42 former National Organic Standards Board members, outlining their grave concern about the direction of the National Organic Program.

Dave Chapman, co-director of the Real Organic Project (ROP), gave the following assessment of their meeting. (You can read his full takeaway here.)

We met for forty-five minutes. We found Tom Vilsack to be courteous, respectful, intelligent and very well-informed, and he was very familiar with the issues we were discussing.

By the end of the meeting, it was clear to us that those at the Real Organic Project shouldn’t quit their day jobs.

We saw that the Secretary actually could not or would not solve these problems. It wasn’t personal. It wasn’t a question of getting a “better” person in the job. We were not dealing with a person who lacked the courage to get it done. We were dealing with a system that was operating exactly as it was designed to operate. We were dealing with powerful forces like the lobbyists. Like the National Pork Producers Council. Like the Office of Budget and Management (OMB). Vilsack made clear that no matter what the USDA signed off on, nothing would happen without OMB support as well. Vilsack also has to assuage powerful Senators (of both parties) some of whom support CAFO (confinement) poultry being certified as organic. He has to deal with powerful industry lobbies that, with the support of the government, are redefining “organic.”

THERE IS HOPE

It is very easy to read stories about fraud in organic, not to mention the lack of support from the government, and get discouraged. Yet, there is real reason for hope.

In the U.S., “we” are the government. The people who run our country do so because we elected these officials into power and gave them the authority to oversee the day-to-day operations of our nation.

The reason that the National Organic Program is not being managed in the way that many of us believe it should is because “we” are not doing our part by getting involved and holding these leaders accountable. As such, there are plenty of well-funded lobbyists to fill this vacuum and shape agricultural policy, to the detriment of organic.

The reality is that organic is a victim of its own success. The number of individuals who are content to eat pesticide-laden, genetically-modified foods is decreasing by the day. Therefore, it is a near-guarantee that organic will continue to grow each year, with organic brands getting acquired or going public for hundreds of millions or billions of dollars.

This financial success has made it such that keeping a close eye on standards and enforcement is just not a serious priority for most of the industry. As a result, we have the organic system we have today.

The good news is that all of this can change, and it does not require mobilizing tens of thousands of people. All we have to do is look at the Real Organic Project (ROP) as evidence — a non-profit that was formed only a few years ago.

Despite the fact that ROP operates on a bare-bones budget and is led by a handful of small organic farmers, the group’s sheer determination and unwavering commitment to protect the integrity of organic has resulted in it becoming one of the industry’s most influential organizations; so much so that that it now has a direct line of communication with Secretary Vilsack, he responded to the group’s letter within 24 hours, and 1,000 organic farms are expected to have received ROP certification by the end of 2021.

The USDA organic seal could accurately represent a uniform level of production methods and ensure high-quality organic products that consumers expect, but only if we all decide that it is important enough.

With gratitude,

Max Goldberg, Founder

This Week's Quick Hits

Quick Hits

* It’s official: Natural Products Expo East in Philadelphia (September 22-25), Fancy Food Show in NYC (September 27-29) and the Natural Products Modern Health Pop-Up at SupplySide West in Las Vegas (October 25-28).


* The Finnish company producing organic fertilizer from used batteries.


* Food & Wine’s 25 Game-Changers for 2021.


* 20 takeaways from the State of the U.S. Natural and Organic Industry at Natural Products Expo West Virtual Week.


* Elizabeth Candelario, the former president of Demeter USA, has just been named Director of Strategic Partnerships at Mad Agriculture.


* Eleven Madison Park’s $335 vegan menu in NYC.


* The organic farmer selling eggs and honey from a vending machine.


* Love Crunch announced a new, year-long partnership with The Trevor Project, a suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQ young people.


* In San Diego, GOODONYA’s organic market and wine lounge is now open.


* Dubai prison inmates develop green fingers on a thriving organic farm.


* Eight farmhouses on Airbnb that will make you want to abandon city life.


* The organic rise of Larry June, the rap game’s Jack LaLanne.


New Organic Products

New Organic Products

Dog Treats from Lord Jameson

Lord Jameson, an award-winning dog wellness company, has just received its USDA organic certification. The brand's two collections of holistic dog treats are certified gluten-free, vegan and contain no soy or corn.  

Legendary Cookie Dough and Cups of Joy Ice Cream from Coconut Bliss

In conjunction with its recent rebrand, plant-based ice cream company Coconut Bliss has introduced two new organic offerings -- Legendary Cookie Dough and Cups of Joy. Cups of Joy is the brand's first-ever, single-serve product and is available in dark chocolate and Madagascan vanilla bean.    

Ultimate Shots from Uncle Matt's Organic

Uncle Matt's Organic has just entered into a new product category with the launch of its Ultimate Shots line. Crafted with functional ingredients and probiotics, the shots come in three varieties -- Ultimate Defense, Ultimate Immune and Ultimate Energy.

Elderberry Zinc Immune Support Syrup from MegaFood

MegaFood has just introduced its Elderberry Zinc Immune Support Syrup, which provides 100% of the daily recommended intake of zinc. Non-GMO Project verified, Glyphosate Residue-Free certified, vegetarian, gluten-free and dairy-free.  
This Week's News Items

Weekly News Summaries

First Course
Successful Farming

USDA to Revisit Organic Animal Welfare Rules

By Chuck Abbott

The USDA announced the other day that it will take another look at the organic animal welfare rules, which were tossed out by the Trump administration.

PR Newswire

Serenity Kids closes $7M Series A

The organic and Non-GMO baby and toddler food brand raised $7M from CircleUp Growth Partners, Wild Ventures, Thrive Market's Nick Green and Gunnar Lovelace, and other individuals.

GlobeNewsWire

More Attention and Funding for Organic, says USDA's Vilsack

At the Organic Trade Association's annual membership meeting, Secretary Vilsack announced, among other things, the re-establishment of the position of USDA Organic Policy Advisor and “tens of millions of dollars” more for the USDA’s Organic Certification Cost Share program.

Second Course
Food Navigator

Once Upon a Farm acquires Raised Real

By Elaine Watson

In a very smart acquisition, Once Upon a Farm has purchased direct-to-consumer frozen organic baby and toddler brand Raised Real for an undisclosed sum.

NutraIngredients

Legal Chaos Continues with CBD Market

By Shane Starling

A good overview of the current market situation and legal uncertainty surrounding CBD supplements and food.

Associated Press

Grape Growers in Texas sue over Herbicide Damage

Family-owned vineyards have reported losses of more than 90% since Bayer-Monsanto and BASF began selling their dicamba-based, genetically-modified seed system to cotton growers.

Third Course
Food Dive

Study: 1/3rd of People Ate More Chocolate During COVID

By Lauren Manning

According to Cargill's new ChocoLogic study, 75% of consumers see chocolate as a reward, 72% say it is a mood booster and 59% believe it increases their energy.

Food Navigator

Heavy Metals in Baby Food: 86 Lawsuits and Counting

By Elaine Watson

After the Congressional subcommittee report alleging "dangerously high" levels of lead, mercury, cadmium and arsenic in select baby food products, Plum Organics, Happy Family Organics, Earth's Best and others have been hit with lawsuits.

Forbes

Tiny Organics raises $11M Series A

By Douglas Yu

The NYC-based organic baby food company closed on a round from Springdale Ventures, InvestEco, Silas Capital, Gary Vaynerchuk and others.


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This Week's Quick Hits

Quick Hits

* It’s official: Natural Products Expo East in Philadelphia (September 22-25), Fancy Food Show in NYC (September 27-29) and the Natural Products Modern Health Pop-Up at SupplySide West in Las Vegas (October 25-28).


* The Finnish company producing organic fertilizer from used batteries.


* Food & Wine’s 25 Game-Changers for 2021.


* 20 takeaways from the State of the U.S. Natural and Organic Industry at Natural Products Expo West Virtual Week.


* Elizabeth Candelario, the former president of Demeter USA, has just been named Director of Strategic Partnerships at Mad Agriculture.


* Eleven Madison Park’s $335 vegan menu in NYC.


* The organic farmer selling eggs and honey from a vending machine.


* Love Crunch announced a new, year-long partnership with The Trevor Project, a suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQ young people.


* In San Diego, GOODONYA’s organic market and wine lounge is now open.


* Dubai prison inmates develop green fingers on a thriving organic farm.


* Eight farmhouses on Airbnb that will make you want to abandon city life.


* The organic rise of Larry June, the rap game’s Jack LaLanne.


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