NOSB’s Spring 2015 Meeting Marked by Brutal Workload, Controversy by Will Fantle Source: iStock The National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) held its semi-annual meeting in La Jolla, California, April 27–30. The board’s four-day meeting was dominated by the discussion surrounding the 200 synthetic and non-organic materials allowed for use in organics and scheduled for their… Read more »
Search Results for: NOSB
(ALERT OVER) – Urge the NOSB to Remove Soy Lecithin from the National List
Little-known food ingredient takes center stage in precedent-setting vote Public Comments due Monday, November 3rd Take a look at the bar of organic chocolate in your desk drawer or the carton of organic ice cream in your freezer, and you’ll likely see a little-known but very common food ingredient: lecithin. Unless the ingredients list specifically… Read more »
USDA Releases New Organic “Pasture Rule” — Running out the Clock for Family Farmers?
CORNUCOPIA, WI — After eight years of intense scrutiny and criticism the USDA has published a proposed amendment to the federal organic regulations intended to address abuses by “factory farms,” milking thousands of cows each and masquerading as organic. The heated controversy pitted the country’s 1700-1800 families who produce organic milk, and their loyal customers,… Read more »
Nominations Open for Five Vacancies on the National Organic Standards Board
[This action alert is now closed] Application Deadline is June 17 Two positions for organic farmers are among the five vacancies the USDA is seeking to fill on the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB). Appointees will serve a five-year term beginning in January 2016. Vacancies for the 15-member organic advisory board must represent a particular… Read more »
The Organic Watergate: Advocates Condemn Corruption and USDA’s Cozy Relationship with Corporate Agribusinesses in Organics
[This action alert is over.] Cornucopia, WI — The nation’s leading organic farming watchdog, The Cornucopia Institute, is challenging what it calls a “conspiracy” between corporate agribusiness interests and the USDA that has increasingly facilitated the use of questionable synthetic additives and even dangerous chemicals in organic foods. In its new white paper, The Organic… Read more »
Largest Corporate Dairy, Biotech Firm and USDA Accused of Conspiring to Corrupt Rulemaking and Pollute Organics
Watchdog Requests Federal Investigation, Files Ethics Charges WASHINGTON, DC: The Cornucopia Institute, an organic industry research and watchdog organization, announced it has formally requested the USDA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) to investigate corruption at its National Organic Program resulting in the use of illegal synthetics in organic food and then allowing powerful corporations to… Read more »
Francis Thicke’s Testimony to the NOSB
Cornucopia’s Take: Francis Thicke runs Radiance Dairy, a 236-acre grass-based dairy in Iowa. He retired from his position as an environmental representative on the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) last year, offering deeply honest and memorable closing comments. Francis is presently the chair of the Policy Committee of the Organic Farmers Association and sits on… Read more »
Keep Organics Rooted in Nutritious Soil
[The comment period for this issue is now closed.] Comment to the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) by March 30 When food grown without soil (hydroponic) is allowed to carry the organic label, the environmental and health benefits that underpin organic farming are lost, and legitimate, soil-based farmers who steward the land are unfairly undercut… Read more »
Organic Farmer and Sunset Lawsuits Update
Cornucopia Seeks Organic Justice [This article was previously published in the winter issue of The Cultivator, Cornucopia’s quarterly newsletter.] by Will Fantle Codirector at The Cornucopia Institute Source: Adobe Stock The USDA is seeking to dismiss the lawsuit filed by Cornucopia challenging two of the agency’s appointments to the 15-member National Organic Standards Board. Cornucopia alleges that two… Read more »
Groups Raise Organic Fish Farming Concerns
Led by the Center for Food Safety, a number of organizations have endorsed a letter to the National Organic Standards Board raising concerns about proposed organic regulations governing fish farming. The Cornucopia Institute is one of the signatories to the joint letter shown below.
