What does it mean when food is organic?

<!DOCTYPE html>  <html lang="en"> <head> <title>What does it mean when food is organic?</title> <meta charset="utf-8"> <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1, shrink-to-fit=no"> <link href='/new/css/bootstrap.min.css' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css' /> <script src="/new/js/jquery-1.12.4.min.js"></script> <script src="/new/js/bootstrap.min.js"></script> <script src="https://npic.orst.edu/js/jquery.smartmenus.min.js" type="text/javascript"></script> <script src='https://npic.orst.edu/js/image-map.js' type='text/javascript'></script> <script src="https://npic.orst.edu/js/npic.js" type="text/javascript" charset="utf-8"></script> <link href='https://npic.orst.edu/css/sm-core-css.css' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css'> <link href='https://npic.orst.edu/css/sm-npic.css' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css'> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/new/css/npic_new.css">  <script async src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=G-3EVX636MBE"></script> <script> window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; 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display: block; height: 220px;"> <img class='img-fluid' src='/health/images/ovcbnr.png' alt='' title='vegetables, photo credit: Sven Hilker, pixabay' style='max-height:200px;max-width:1200px; width:100%; position:absolute; left:0; bottom:0; z-index:1;'> <h1 style="margin-left:0.5em; position:absolute; left: 0; bottom: 0.5em; z-index: 2;">What does it mean when food is organic?</h1> <p style='margin-left:1.5em; position:absolute; left: 0; bottom: 0; z-index: 2;'><a href='organic.es.html'><b>En español</b></a></p> </div> </div> <div id="faq"> <h3>Defining organic food</h3> <p>Organic food is grown following the USDA <a href='https://www.ams.usda.gov/about-ams/programs-offices/national-organic-program'>National Organic Program</a> Standard. Organic farmers focus on leaving a better environment for the future. They use renewable resources and conserve soil and water quality.</p> <img class='fsImageRight' style='margin-top:2em; margin-left:1em;' src='/images/fsimages/veggiefruit.jpg' width='250' height='250' alt='' title='fruits and vegetables, photo credit: Keith Weller, USDA'> <p>Organic farmers don't use:</p> <ul> <li>human-made pesticides, with a few <a href='https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-7/subtitle-B/chapter-I/subchapter-M/part-205/subpart-G'>exceptions</a> <li>fertilizer prepared with human-made ingredients or sewage sludge</li> <li>genetically engineered plants and animals</li> </ul> <h3>Recognizing an organic product</h3> <img class='fsImageLeft' style='margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-right:1em;' src='/images/fsimages/usdaorganicseal.jpg' width='250' height='250' alt='' title='USDA organic seal, photo credit: USDA'> <p>Look for the official "USDA Organic" seal on the food label. To earn this label, the producer has to be inspected by a government-approved <a href='https://www.ams.usda.gov/services/organic-certification'>certifier</a>. They make sure the producer follows the required organic standards. Companies that handle or process organic foods have to be certified as well.</p> <p>The "USDA Organic" seal also tells you that a product is 100% organic or made with at least 95% organic ingredients. Products with 70-94% organic ingredients cannot use the USDA Organic seal, but they can be <a href='https://www.ams.usda.gov/blog-post/organic-101-%E2%80%9Corganic%E2%80%9D-brand-name%E2%80%A6organic-package'>labeled</a> "Made with Organic Ingredients."</p> <h3>Pesticide residues on organic foods</h3> <p>There may be residue from pesticides used in organic food production, which include natural substances like plant oils and sulfur dust. <a href='/health/ovc.html'>Conventional foods</a> may have residues of man-made pesticides that are used to protect crops from insects, weeds, and diseases. Organic foods typically carry a lower amount of pesticide residue than conventional foods.</p> <h3>Pesticide limits and testing in organic foods</h3> <img class='fsImageRight' style='margin-top:2em; margin-left:1em;' src='/images/fsimages/pestrestest.jpg' width='200' height='300' alt='' title='pesticide residue testing, photo credit: Scott Bauer, USDA'> <p>The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) sets the maximum level of each pesticide that can be on each type of food. These levels are called <a href='/reg/tolerance.html'>tolerances</a>. Most of the natural pesticides used in organic production are exempt from the requirement for a tolerance because they are so <a href='/ingred/ptype/minrisk.html'>low in toxicity</a>.</p> <p>Trace amounts of man-made pesticides may get into organic foods. This might happen if an organic farmer's neighbor uses them, or if a processing plant handles both organic and non-organic foods. Since this contact may be unavoidable or inadvertent, USDA regulations allow residues of prohibited pesticides, up to 5 percent of the tolerance level.</p> <p>For example, permethrin is a man-made pesticide that is used on non-organic peach trees.</p> <ul> <li>1.0 ppm – The amount of permethrin allowed to be found on non-organic peaches <li>0.05 ppm – The amount of permethrin allowed to be found on organic peaches </ul> <p>USDA randomly tests products that display the USDA Organic seal to monitor compliance with the regulations, and to discourage mislabeling.</p> </div>  <div id='topicFsBottomDiv' style='clear:both; margin-top:4em;'> <img style='float:right; margin-left:1em;margin-top:1em;' src="/images/fsimages/osulogo.gif" alt=""> <p>If you have questions about this, or any pesticide-related topic, please call NPIC at <span class="bigger"><b>1-800-858-7378</b></span> (8:00am - 12:00pm PST), or email us at <a href="mailto:npic@ace.orst.edu">npic@ace.orst.edu</a>.</p> <p style="border:none;height:15px;"></p> </div> <div id='lastUpdated'>Last updated November 13, 2023</div> </div>  <div class='container-fluid'> <div class='row'> <div class='col-md-12'> <p> </p><hr><h3>Related NPIC Topics:</h3> <div id='relatedLinks'><ul> <li><a href='/ingred/organic.html'>Pesticide Ingredients Used in Organic Agriculture</a></li> <li><a href='/health/ovc.html'>Organic vs. Conventionally Grown Food</a></li> <li><a href='/health/foodprac.html'>Minimizing Pesticide Residues in Food</a></li> <li><a href='/ingred/ptype/natbio.html'>Natural and Biological Pesticides</a></li> </ul></div><div> <h3>What are pests?</h3> <ul><li><a href='https://npic.orst.edu/pest/learnpest.html'>Learn about a pest</a></li> <li><a href='https://npic.orst.edu/pest/idpest.html'>Identify a pest</a></li> <li><a href='https://npic.orst.edu/pest/controlpest.html'>Control a pest</a></li> <li><a href='https://npic.orst.edu/pest/ipm.html'>Integrated Pest Management</a></li> </ul> <h3>What are pesticides?</h3> <ul> <li><a href='/pest/weeds.html'>Herbicides</a></li> <li><a href='/ingred/ptype/amicrob/index.html'>Disinfectants</a></li> <li><a href='/ingred/ptype/fungicide.html'>Fungicides</a></li> <li><a href='/ingred/ptype/insecticide.html'>Insecticides</a></li> <li><a href='/ingred/ptype/natbio.html'>Natural and Biological Pesticides</a></li> <li><a href='/ingred/ptype/repel.html'>Repellents</a></li> <li><a href='/ingred/ptype/rodenticide.html'>Rodenticides</a></li> <li><a href='/ingred/ptype/index.html'>Other types of pesticides</a></li> </ul> </div></div></div> <div style='height: 5em;'></div> <footer class="footer"> <div class="container"> <p> Please read our <a href="https://npic.orst.edu/Disclaimer.html">disclaimer</a> | <a href="https://npic.orst.edu/contactus.html">Contact us</a> | <a href='https://npic.orst.edu/about.html'>About NPIC</a> | <a href='https://npic.orst.edu/index.es.html'>En español</a></p> <p class='small'><a href='https://npic.orst.edu/about.html'>NPIC</a> provides objective, science-based information about pesticides and pesticide-related topics to enable people to make informed decisions. 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What does it mean when food is organic?