In our grocery stores we see such labels as natural, home-free, free-range and others but these terms don’t mean they are organic. These claims maybe true but they aren’t interchangeable with organic.

So how do we know what is or isn’t organic?

We start with looking for a label whether it’s a single-ingredient food such as fruits and vegetables or multiple-ingredient foods such as pasta sauce or bread.

1. The label we are looking for is the USDA Organic Label, as shown bellow. This ensures that the product is at least 95-100% organic. This is applied to both single and multiple-ingredient foods.
   
2. If there isn’t a USDA Organic Label but the product states “organic” on the front of the box or package then it is ensured that the ingredients are at least 70% organically produced.
3. If there isn’t a USDA Organic Label or the word “organic” on the front of the product, then we look at the side panel. Here companies can list specific ingredients that are organically produced but they may not make any claims of “organic” on the front of the package.

For more information or to read further in-depth about these labeling rules, I suggest reading this consumer brochure produced by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

organic | organic labeling | USDA

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