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ORGANICS & GMO



IS "ORGANIC" ALWAYS GMO FREE?



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ORGANIC IS "USUALLY" GMO FREE...



Buying 100% Organic, certified Organic, and USDA Organic-labeled products is usually the easiest way to identify and avoid genetically modified ingredients.



The United States and Canadian governments do NOT allow companies to label products “100% / Certified Organic” if they contain genetically modified foods. To put it in more detail: 100% Organic: Must contain 100 percent organically produced ingredients (excluding water and salt). This is the only label that certifies a completely organic product AND completely GMO-free ingredients.


Certified Organic / USDA Organic: At least 95 percent of content is organic by weight (excluding water and salt). The <5% remaining ingredients must consist of substances approved on the USDA’s National List. GMOs are NOT on this list, so USDA Organic products are also usually GMO-free.


For verification, consult the following sources:

The USDA’s National Organic Program overview page

The USDA’s National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances

The USDA’s Organic 101 blog A 2011 USDA policy memo in response to confusion over GMOs in organics

The National Organic Standards Board Policy and Procedures Manual


Made with Organic: Up to 70% of the ingredients are organic. These products can NOT carry a “USDA organic” label, however their “remaining non-organic ingredients are produced without prohibited practices, including genetic engineering.” But lately, even organic products are at risk….


Why Say “Usually?”


If USDA certification requires at least 95% of content to be organic, and a GMO ingredient can’t be included in that 5%, then USDA Organic is GMO-free, right? Not always. Depending on the product, sometimes there are tiny loopholes. Says Barry Estabrook (author of Politics of the Plate) in this excellent article: “The casings for those tasty USDA Organic sausages can come from conventionally raised animals that have been fed antibiotics (or GMO-laden corn). The hops in your favorite organic beer can be sprayed with all manner of chemical pesticides and fertilizers.”


The USDA’s loophole list also includes two far more common ingredients: non-organic cornstarch (which in our opinion is long overdue for removal from the “acceptable” list, considering how many sources of organic cornstarch are now readily available to commercial food manufacturers), and soy lecithin (though only one form of soy lecithin is allowed, and only when an organic option is not available).


The loophole list includes a few surprises too, such as the use of antibiotics on organic apples and pears, in order to prevent fire blight. Fortunately the National Organics Standards Board recently decided to disallow this practice effective October 2014. How are these organic loopholes possible? Typically it’s because there is no readily available, commercially manufactured organic option for that particular product or ingredient (though in the case of organic cornstarch, we beg to differ). If you’re curious to know more, here’s a great article that describes how these decisions get made.


But sometimes there’s another reason… says Barry: “The National Organic Standards Board (NOSB), which has the power to determine what materials can — and cannot — be used in organic production, too often weakens regulations in the face of intense lobbying by corporations who are more interested in the higher profits conferred by the word “organic” than in strong and meaningful standards.” And let’s just remember how much Monsanto has invested in corporate lobbying dollars… Getting discouraged yet? There’s more…


Despite rigid organic certification procedures, organic certification is about the *process* of growing food, not about the actual resulting food. There is no testing process for organic ingredients, so there is a chance that GMO contamination could occur. And sadly, GMO contamination can happen any number of natural ways: 1.) via cross-pollination between GMO and non-GMO crops, 2.) from trace amounts of GMO ingredients found in animal feed (as per the alfalfa/bluegrass section above), 3.) from seeds traveling by wind or by migratory birds that take root in the soil of an organic farm, and 4.) from ingredient suppliers that co-mingle various sources.


Just look at this recent response from the USDA regarding a series of questions raised by organic farmers after GMO alfalfa was approved. A similar situation is already happening in Australia— a farmer just lost his organic certification due to wind-borne contamination from a neighboring GMO crop.


Even more sobering is the potential contamination from genetically engineered Kentucky Bluegrass. This grass is used in animal forage — including grass-fed animals. Now that Kentucky Bluegrass been genetically engineered for RoundUp resistance, not only does it contain genetic material that is no longer natural, but it can be heavily sprayed with RoundUp to remove weeds. And because grass spreads rapidly, it’s only a matter of time before this becomes the next superweed. Last but not least, “contamination” can also happen when it takes nearly three years for a manufacturer who illegally uses the term “organic” in their labeling to be noticed, reported, investigated, and forced to amend their label. The oversight of organic manufacturers “falls far short of assuring standards are met.”


Buying USDA Organic / GMO FreeAs explained above, buying USDA Organic is by no means a failsafe. However at this point in time, USDA Organic remains one of the best and most easily-identifiable ways of assuring that you are eating GMO-free foods most of the time. Want to take it one step further? Buy products that are also certified by the Non-GMO Project. The certification process behind this label is currently the best possible way of assuring that you are eating GMO-free food (though bear in mind, not all of the products bearing the Non-GMO Project label are organic—for the best of both worlds, chose products that also include the USDA Organic label).


Sadly however, just like organic certification, the word “usually” once again comes into play: the Non-GMO Project’s website clearly states that its label does not guarantee a product is 100% GMO-free, because contamination is an ever-growing threat. So what does the label really mean?



PROCESS AND LABELS



ARTICLE CONTINUED:



GMO Free Certification Process:


When you see the above label on a product, it means the producer took additional time, effort and money to go through a certification program similar to the one used to obtain organic certification, only it’s designed to focus on GMO-free processes. Started initially by retailers, the Non-GMO Project’s Product Verification Program (PVP)‘s core requirements include “traceability, segregation, and testing at critical control points.”


Compliant products bear the Non-GMO Project Seal shown above (explained in detail here), indicating that the product has been produced in accordance with the best practices of the Non-GMO Project Standard. Read a great article about the reasons why this program was started, despite similar process testing procedures for organic products.


Another GMO Free Certification Process:


Those of you who are familiar with Natural Food Certifiers‘ “Apple K Kosher” certification process / label will be happy to know that the organization now offers their own non-GMO verification program and label, called GMO Guard. Announced in 2013, NFC’s program “meets the no-GMO verification needs for the entire food chain from farm to table, is designed to be as clear and easy to navigate as possible, and remain affordable.”


Other GMO Free Labels:


When you see a “GMO free” label on an organic product, how does it compare to certified organic or certified Non-GMO Project standards? Hard to say. Because there is no certification program associated with this label, it is simply the producer’s word that all fields, ingredients, processes, and storage avoid contact with, and contain no genetically modified ingredients.


This doesn’t mean this label isn’t valid; sometimes producers can’t afford the cost of becoming certified organic or certified through the Non-GMO Project, and thus use this label as a sign of good faith. And because so many consumers don’t know that Certified Organic = GMO free (I didn’t, until I did the research), it can be a more obvious and affordable way of letting customers know.


No label in sight? Sometimes you need to read the fine print: some manufacturers don’t include a little GMO free icon, but they do include the words “we don’t use genetically engineered ingredients” (or similar wording) on the back of their labeling (hope you brought your reading glasses to the grocery store). 🙂


Organic versus Certified Naturally Grown:


When the USDA Organic program started in 2002, many small farms were forced to make a difficult choice: either pay high certification fees and complete mounds of paperwork to become “Certified Organic,” or give up using the word “organic” to describe their produce and/or livestock. Believing that neither choice was very attractive, a group of farmers created Certified Naturally Grown (CNG), to provide an alternative way to assure their customers that they observed strict growing practices.


Their methods include using natural biological cycles – incorporating a careful balance of micro-organisms, soil flora and fauna, natural pollinators, plants and animals – to create a sustainable farming system. The resulting products meet and in some cases exceed the USDA standards but do not carry any of the official government approved organic seals. CNG now consists of more than 500 member farms in 47 states and growing. Note: the majority of the CNG producers (farms and apiaries) that I perused included the words “GMO free” in their product descriptions.


So what does this all boil down to, when you’re trying to choose a product?


Just this week I was looking for mayonnaise at my local natural foods co-op. They had a fairly broad selection of various organic mayonnaises from different manufacturers. All of the mayo labels said “organic” somewhere on the label. Two of them said USDA Certified Organic. But only one had “GMO free” in addition to “organic” on the label. Coincidentally, it was the only mayonnaise that was not made from one the “Big Four” GMO crops (corn, soy, canola or cotton seed oil). Does that mean it was the only mayo that was GMO free? No.


The others were labeled organic, which technically means they couldn’t be GMO. Yet they didn’t have a “non-GMO” label, and they were sourced from crops with high incidences of GMO farming (soy and canola). I tried consulting my two “non GMO shopping list” iphone apps, but none of the mayo brands on the shelf were mentioned (either as a pro or a con). So I ended up playing it extra safe and buying the safflower-based mayo with the Non-GMO label. What would you have done?


LEARN MORE…To view (or download if you wish) a PDF document containing an in-depth, evidence-based examination of the “Myths and Truths” about GMOs written by a noted geneticist, click here. To keep abreast of breaking news, information and helpful recommendations about avoiding GMOs, consider “liking” our GMO Awareness Facebook page.


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