“Why do we call it The Organic Watergate? Although not a constitutional crisis on par with what happened during the Nixon administration, the USDA’s blatant disregard for the requirements laid out in the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (OFPA), and the intent of Congress, is illegal and has inappropriately favored corporate agribusiness over the interests of ethical businesses, farmers and consumers. We will leave it up to the reader to decide whether the cozy relationship between the USDA and agribusiness lobbyists, in relationship to the documentary evidence we will present, constitutes a “conspiracy” to change the working definition of the organic label. When Congress passed OFPA, it set up an independent advisory panel, the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB), that, unlike other advisory boards, has statutory authority. Any synthetic input or ingredient used in organic food production must be reviewed and approved by the NOSB to assure that no chemicals that could pose a threat to human health or the environment are used in organic food production. The NOSB also recommends policy and modifications to the regulations governing organic agriculture and food processing in the United States.”
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